Time elements for enhanced performance of the Dromo orbit propagator
- Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Largo Bruno Pontecorvo 5, I-56127 Pisa (Italy)
- Research Fellow, Department of Applied Physics, E.T.S.I. Aeronáuticos, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Plaza Cardenal Cisneros 3, E-28040 Madrid (Spain)
We propose two time elements for the orbit propagator named Dromo. One is linear and the other constant with respect to the independent variable, which coincides with the osculating true anomaly in the Keplerian motion. They are defined from a generalized Kepler's equation written for negative values of the total energy and, unlike the few existing time elements of this kind, are free of singularities. To our knowledge it is the first time that a constant time element is associated with a second-order Sundman time transformation. Numerical tests to assess the performance of the Dromo method equipped with a time element show the remarkable improvement in accuracy for the perturbed bounded motion around the Earth compared to the case in which the physical time is a state variable. Moreover, the method is competitive with and even better than other efficient sets of elements. Finally, we also derive a time element for a null and positive total energy.
- OSTI ID:
- 22342274
- Journal Information:
- Astronomical Journal (New York, N.Y. Online), Vol. 148, Issue 3; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1538-3881
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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