We demonstrate the remarkable effectiveness of boundary value formulations coupled to numerical continuation for the computation of stable and unstable manifolds in systems of ordinary differential equations. Specifically, we consider the Circular Restricted Three-Body Problem (CR3BP), which models the motion of a satellite in an Earth- Moon-like system. The CR3BP has many well-known families of periodic orbits, such as the planar Lyapunov orbits and the non-planar Vertical and Halo orbits. We compute the unstable manifolds of selected Vertical and Halo orbits, which in several cases leads to the detection of heteroclinic connections from such a periodic orbit to invariant tori. Subsequent continuation of these connecting orbits with a suitable end point condition and allowing the energy level to vary, leads to the further detection of apparent homoclinic connections from the base periodic orbit to itself, or the detection of heteroclinic connections from the base periodic orbit to other periodic orbits. Some of these connecting orbits could be of potential interest in space-mission design.
For the Restricted Circular Planar 3 Body Problem, we show that there exists an open set $\mathcal U$ in phase space independent of fixed measure, where the set of initial points which lead to collision is $O(μ^\frac{1}{20})$ dense as $μ\rightarrow 0$.
We show that a hypersurface of the regularized, spatial circular restricted three-body problem is of contact type whenever the energy level is below the first critical value (the energy level of the first Lagrange point) or if the energy level is slightly above it. A dynamical consequence is that there is no blue sky catastrophe in this energy range.
We present a method for proving the existence of symmetric periodic, heteroclinic or homoclinic orbits in dynamical systems with the reversing symmetry. As an application we show that the Planar Restricted Circular Three Body Problem (PCR3BP) corresponding to the Sun-Jupiter-Oterma system possesses an infinite number of symmetric periodic orbits and homoclinic orbits to the Lyapunov orbits. Moreover, we show the existence of symbolic dynamics on six symbols for PCR3BP and the possibility of resonance transitions of the comet. This extends earlier results by Wilczak and Zgliczynski - Heteroclin…
Consider the Restricted Planar Circular 3 Body Problem with both realistic mass ratio and Jacobi constant for the Sun-Jupiter pair. We prove the existence of all possible combinations of past and future final motions. In particular, we obtain the existence of oscillatory motions. All the constructed trajectories cross the orbit of Jupiter but avoid close encounters with it. The proof relies on the method of correctly aligned windows and is computer assisted.
We present a computer assisted proof of existence of a family of Lyapunov orbits which stretches from L2 up to half the distance to the smaller primary in the Jupiter-Sun planar restricted circular three body problem. We then focus on a small family of Lyapunov orbits with energies close to comet Oterma and show that their associated invariant manifolds intersect transversally. Our computer assisted proof provides explicit bounds on the location and on the angle of intersection.
A method to establish regions of phase space through which pass no invariant tori transverse to a given direction field is applied to the planar circular restricted three-body problem. Implications for the location of stable orbits for planets around a binary star are deduced. It is expected that lessons learnt from this problem will be useful for applications of the method to other contexts such as flux surfaces for magnetic fields, guiding centre motion in magnetic fields, and classical models of chemical reaction dynamics.
In the restricted three-body problem, consecutive collision orbits are those orbits which start and end at collisions with one of the primaries. Interests for such orbits arise not only from mathematics but also from various engineering problems. In this article, using Floer homology, we show that there are either a periodic collisional orbit, or infinitely many consecutive collision orbits in the planar circular restricted three-body problem on each bounded component of the energy hypersurface for Jacobi energy below the first critical value.
We introduce a circular restricted charged three-body problem on the plane. In this model, the gravitational and Coulomb forces, due to the primary bodies, act on a test particle; the net force exerted by some primary body on the test particle can be attractive, repulsive or null. The restricted problem is obtained by the general planar charged three-body problem considering one mass of the three bodies going to zero. We obtain necessary restrictions for the parameters that appear in the problem, in order to be well defined. Taking into account such restriction, we study the existence and line…
Many unstable periodic orbits of the planar circular restricted 3-body problem (PCRTBP) persist as invariant tori when a periodic forcing is added to the equations of motion. In this study, we compute tori corresponding to exterior Jupiter-Europa and interior Jupiter-Ganymede PCRTBP resonant periodic orbits in a concentric circular restricted 4-body problem (CCR4BP). Motivated by the 2:1 Laplace resonance between Europa and Ganymede's orbits, we then attempt the continuation of a Jupiter-Europa 3:4 resonant orbit from the CCR4BP into the Jupiter-Ganymede PCRTBP. We strongly believe that the re…
In this paper, we consider a time-periodically forced Kepler problem in any dimensions, with an external force which we only assume to be regular in a neighborhood of the attractive center. We prove that there exist infinitely many periodic orbits in this system, with possible double collisions with the center regularized, which accumulate the attractive center. The result is obtained via a localization argument combined with a result on $C^{1}$-persistence of closed orbits by a local homotopy-streching argument. Consequently, by formulating the circular and elliptic restricted three-body prob…
When the planar circular restricted 3-body problem (RTBP) is periodically perturbed, families of unstable periodic orbits break up into whiskered tori, with most tori persisting into the perturbed system. In this study, we 1) develop a quasi-Newton method which simultaneously solves for the tori and their center, stable, and unstable directions; 2) implement continuation by both perturbation as well as rotation numbers; 3) compute Fourier-Taylor parameterizations of the stable and unstable manifolds; 4) regularize the equations of motion; and 5) globalize these manifolds. Our methodology impro…
Chaotic phenomena in generic unfoldings of the Hamilton Hopf bifurcation with emphasis on the restricted planar circular 3-body problem beyond the Gascheau-Routh mass ratio
This contribution investigates the properties of a category of orbits around Enceladus. In a previous investigation, a set of heteroclinic connections were designed between halo orbits around the equilibrium points L1 and L2 of the circular restricted three-body problem with Saturn and Enceladus as primaries. The geometrical characteristics of those trajectories makes them good candidates as science orbits for the extended observation of the surface of Enceladus: they are highly inclined, they approach the moon and they are maneuver-free. However, the low heights above the surface and the stro…
In recent years, stable and unstable manifolds of invariant objects (such as libration points and periodic orbits) have been increasingly recognized as an efficient tool for designing transfer trajectories in space missions. However, most methods currently used in mission design rely on using eigenvectors of the linearized dynamics as local approximations of the manifolds. Since such approximations are not accurate except very close to the base invariant object, this requires large amounts of numerical integration to globalize the manifolds and locate intersections. In this paper, we study hyp…
In this paper we consider the circular restricted three body problem which models the motion of a masless body under the influence of the Newtionan gravitational force caused by two other bodies, the primaries, which move along cicular planar Keplerian orbits. In a suitable system of coordinates, this system has two degrees of freedom and the conserved energy is usually called the Jacobi constant. In 1980, J. Llibre and C. Simó proved the existence of oscillatory motions for the restricted planar circular three body problem, that is, of orbits which leave every bounded region but which return …
We show in this work that the restricted three-body problem is in general not of contact type and zero is the energy value where the contact property breaks down. More explicitly, sequences of generating orbits with increasingly negative action and energies between $-\sqrt{2}$ and zero are constructed. Using results from Bolotin and MacKay, it is shown that these generating orbits extend to periodic solutions of the restricted three-body problem for small mass ratios and the action remains within a small neighbourhood. These orbits obstruct the existence of contact structures for energy level …
To better understand the orbital dynamics of exoplanets around close binary stars, i.e., circumbinary planets (CBPs), we applied techniques from dynamical systems theory to a physically motivated set of solutions in the Circular Restricted Three-Body Problem (CR3BP). We applied Floquet theory to characterize the linear dynamical behavior -- static, oscillatory, or exponential -- surrounding planar circumbinary periodic trajectories (limit cycles). We computed prograde and retrograde limit cycles and analyzed their geometries, stability bifurcations, and dynamical structures. Orbit and stabilit…
We study the fourth-order stability of the triangular libration points in the absence of resonance for the three-body problem when the infinitesimal mass is affected not only by gravitation but also by light pressure from both primaries. A comprehensive summary of previous results is given, with some inaccuracies being corrected. The Lie triangle method is used to obtain the fourth-order Birkhoff normal form of the Hamiltonian, and the corresponding complex transformation to pre-normal form is given explicitly. We obtain an explicit expression for the determinant required by the Arnold-Moser t…
We treat the circular and elliptic restricted three-body problems in inertial frames as periodically forced Kepler problems with additional singularities and explain that in this setting the main result of [4] is applicable. This guarantees the existence of an arbitrary large number of generalized periodic orbits (periodic orbits with possible double collisions regularized) provided the mass ratio of the primaries is small enough.
We develop computer assisted arguments for proving the existence of transverse homoclinic connecting orbits, and apply these arguments for a number of non-perturbative parameter and energy values in the spatial equilateral circular restricted four body problem. The idea is to formulate the desired connecting orbits as solutions of certain two point boundary value problems for orbit segments which originate and terminate on the local stable/unstable manifolds attached to a periodic orbit. These boundary value problems are studied via a Newton-Kantorovich argument in an appropriate Cartesian pro…
Rapid GPU-Assisted Search and Parameterization-Based Refinement and Continuation of Connections between Tori in Periodically Perturbed Planar Circular Restricted 3-Body Problems
We show that the planar circular restricted three body problem is of restricted contact type for all energies below the first critical value (action of the first Lagrange point) and for energies slightly above it. This opens up the possibility of using the technology of Contact Topology to understand this particular dynamical system.
The restricted planar elliptic three body problem models the motion of a massless body under the Newtonian gravitational force of the two other bodies, the primaries, which evolve in Keplerian ellipses. A trajectory is called oscillatory if it leaves every bounded region but returns infinitely often to some fixed bounded region. We prove the existence of such type of trajectories for any values for the masses of the primaries provided they make almost circular orbits.
The objective of this work is to demonstrate the utility of Lyapunov functions in control synthesis for the purpose of maintaining and stabilizing a spacecraft in a circular orbit around the L4 point in the circular restricted three body problem (CRTBP). Incorporating the requirements of a fixed radius orbit and a desired angular momentum, a Lyapunov function is constructed and the requisite analysis is performed to obtain a controller. Asymptotic stability is proved in a defined region around the L4 point using LaSalle's principle.
We describe a method for computing an atlas for the stable or unstable manifold attached to an equilibrium point, and implement the method for the saddle-focus libration points of the planar equilateral restricted four body problem. We employ the method at the maximally symmetric case of equal masses, where we compute atlases for both the stable and unstable manifolds. The resulting atlases are comprised of thousands of individual chart maps, with each chart represented by a two variable Taylor polynomial. Post-processing the atlas data yields approximate intersections of the invariant manifol…
We prove the existence of chaotic motions in a planar restricted four body problem, establishing that the system is not integrable. The idea of the proof is to verify the hypotheses of a topological forcing theorem. The forcing theorem applies to two freedom Hamiltonian systems where the stable and unstable manifolds of a saddle-focus equilibrium intersect transversally in the energy level set of the equilibrium. We develop a mathematically rigorous computer assisted argument which verifies the hypotheses of the forcing theorem, and we implement our approach for the restricted four body proble…
This paper constructs a certain planar four-body problem which exhibits fast energy growth. The system considered is a quasi-periodic perturbation of the Restricted Planar Circular three-body Problem (RPC3BP). Gelfreich-Turaev's and de la Llave's mechanism is employed to obtain the fast energy growth. The diffusion is created by a heteroclinic cycle formed by two Lyapunov periodic orbits surrounding $L_1$ and $L_2$ Lagrangian points and their heteroclinic intersections. Our model is the first known example in celestial mechanics of the a priori chaotic case of Arnold diffusion.
We present a computer assisted proof or diffusion in the Planar Elliptic Restricted Three Body Problem. We treat the elliptic problem as a perturbation of the circular problem, where the perturbation parameter is the eccentricity of the primaries. The unperturbed system preserves energy, and we show that for sufficiently small perturbations we have orbits with explicit energy changes, independent from the size of the perturbation. The result is based on shadowing of orbits along transversal intersections of stable/unstable manifolds of a normally hyperbolic cylinder.
Exploration of vertical self-resonant bifurcations from Distant Retrograde Orbits (DROs) in the Earth-Moon Circular Restricted Three-Body Problem (CR3BP)
The circular restricted three body problem, which considers the dynamics of an infinitesimal particle in the presence of the gravitational interaction with two massive bodies moving on circular orbits about their common center of mass, is a very useful model for investigating the behavior of real astronomical objects in the Solar System. In such a system, there are five Lagrangian equilibrium points, and one important characteristic of the motion is the existence of linearly stable equilibria at the two equilibrium points that form equilateral triangles with the primaries, in the plane of the …
We consider the elliptic three body problem as a perturbation of the circular problem. We show that for sufficiently small eccentricities of the elliptic problem, and for energies sufficiently close to the energy of the libration point L2, a Cantor set of Lyapounov orbits survives the perturbation. The orbits are perturbed to quasi-periodic invariant tori. We show that for a certain family of masses of the primaries, for such tori we have transversal intersections of stable and unstable manifolds, which lead to chaotic dynamics involving diffusion over a short range of energy levels. Some part…
This paper considers two point boundary value problems for conservative systems defined in multiple coordinate systems, and develops a flexible a-posteriori framework for computer assisted existence proofs. Our framework is applied to the study collision and near collision orbits in the circular restricted three body problem. In this case the coordinate systems are the standard rotating coordinates, and the two Levi-Civita coordinate systems regularizing collisions with each of the massive primaries. The proposed framework is used to prove the existence of a number of orbits which have long be…
The planar circular restricted three body problem (PCRTBP) is symmetric with respect to the line of masses and there is a corresponding anti-symplectic involution on the cotangent bundle of the 2-sphere in the regularized PCRTBP. Recently it was shown that each bounded component of an energy hypersurface with low energy for the regularized PCRTBP is fiberwise starshaped. This enable us to define a Lagrangian Rabinowitz Floer homology which is related to periodic orbits symmetric for the anti-symplectic involution in the regularized PCRTBP and hence to symmetric periodic orbits in the unregular…
In this paper we show the existence of syzygies for all periodic orbits inside the bounded Hill's region of the planer circular restricted three-body problem with energy below the second critical value. The proof will follow some ideas of Birkhoff to compute the roots of partial derivatives of the effective potential. Birkhoff's methods are extended to higher energies and a new base case is created and shown to fulfil the requirements. An other step from Birkhoff is scrutinized to continue the statement to all mass ratios. The final step is achieved by integrating over periodic orbits. Applyin…
The problem of nonintegrability of the circular restricted three-body problem is very classical and important in dynamical systems. In the first volume of his masterpieces, Henri Poincaré showed the nonexistence of a real-analytic first integral which is functionally independent of the Hamiltonian and real-analytic in a small parameter representing the mass ratio as well as in the state variables, in both the planar and spatial cases. However, his proof was very complicated and unclear. In this paper, we give a new and simple proof of a very similar result for both the planar and spatial cases…
Several families of irregular moons orbit the giant planets. These moons are thought to have been captured into planetocentric orbits after straying into a region in which the planet's gravitation dominates solar perturbations (the Hill sphere). This mechanism requires a source of dissipation, such as gas-drag, in order to make capture permanent. However, capture by gas-drag requires that particles remain inside the Hill sphere long enough for dissipation to be effective. Recently we have proposed that in the circular restricted three-body problem particles may become caught up in `sticky' cha…
Since Poincaré, periodic orbits have been one of the most important objects in dynamical systems. However, searching them is in general quite difficult. A common way to find them is to construct families of periodic orbits which start at obvious periodic orbits. On the other hand, given two periodic orbits one might ask if they are connected by an orbit cylinder, i.e., by a one-parameter family of periodic orbits. In this article we study this question for a certain class of periodic orbits in the planar circular restricted three-body problem. Our strategy is to compare the Cieliebak-Frauenfel…
We will show that the period $T$ of a closed orbit of the planar circular restricted three-body problem (viewed on rotating coordinates) depends on the region it encloses. Roughly speaking, we show that, $2 T=kπ+\int_Ωg$ where $k$ is an integer, $Ω$ is the region enclosed by the periodic orbit and $g:\mathbb{R}^2\to \mathbb{R}$ is a function that only depends on the constant $C$ known as the Jacobian integral; it does not depend on $Ω$. This theorem has a Keplerian flavor in the sense that it relates the period with the space "swept" by the orbit. As an application, we prove that there is a ne…
We review some recent progress on the research of the periodic orbits of the N-body problem,and propose a numerical scheme to determine the spatial doubly-symmetric periodic orbits (SDSPs for short). Both comet- and lunar-type SDSPs in the circular restricted three-body problem are computed, as well as the Hill-type SDSPs in Hill's lunar problem. Doubly symmetries are exploited so that the SDSPs can be computed efficiently. The monodromy matrix can be calculated by the information of one fourth period. The periodicity conditions are solved by Broyden's method with a line-search, and the algori…
In this article, we identify the 5-dimensional analogue of the finite energy foliations introduced by Hofer--Wysocki--Zehnder for the study of 3-dimensional Reeb flows, and show that these exist for the spatial circular restricted three-body problem (SCR3BP) whenever the planar dynamics is convex. We introduce the notion of a fiberwise-recurrent point, which may be thought of as a symplectic version of the leafwise intersections introduced by Moser, and show that they exist in abundance for a perturbative regime in the SCR3BP. We then use this foliation to induce a Reeb flow on the standard 3-…
This paper demonstrates the existence of twistless tori and the associated reconnection bifurcations and meandering curves in the planar circular restricted three-body problem. Near the Lagrangian equilibrium $\mathcal{L}_4$ a twistless torus is created near the tripling bifurcation of the short period family. Decreasing the mass ratio leads to twistless bifurcations which are particularly prominent for rotation numbers 3/10 and 2/7. This scenario is studied by numerically integrating the regularised Hamiltonian flow, and finding rotation numbers of invariant curves in a two-dimensional Poinca…
