The Astronomical Journal · 2006 · 132 citations · 6 references
Natural SciencesAstronomyCelestial MechanicsGravitationOrbital MechanicsOrbital PerturbationsRestricted Three-body ProblemStabilityStability CriteriaStability TheoryCollinear Equilibrium PointsCoriolis Force EffectsCritical MassCritical Mass TheoryEquilibriumStability Under Third-body PerturbationsThree-body Problem StabilityTriangular Equilibrium Points
This paper investigates the stability of equilibrium points under the influence of small perturbations in the Coriolis and the centrifugal forces, together with the effects of oblateness and radiation pressures of the primaries. It is found that collinear points remain unstable. It is also seen that triangular points are stable for 0 ≤ μ < μc and unstable for μc ≤ μ ≤ , where μ is the critical mass parameter and depends on the above parameters. It is further observed that the Coriolis force has a stabilizing tendency, while the centrifugal force, radiation, and oblateness of the primaries have destabilizing effects; the presence of any one or more of the latter makes weak the stabilizing ability of the former. Therefore, the overall effect is that the range of stability of the triangular points decreases.
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