Hamiltonian structures of dynamics of a gyrostat in a gravitational field

Abstract

The dynamics of a gyrostat in a gravitational field is a fundamental problem in celestial mechanics and space engineering. This paper investigates this problem in the framework of geometric mechanics. Based on the natural symplectic structure, non-canonical Hamiltonian structures of this problem are derived in different sets of coordinates of the phase space. These different coordinates are suitable for different applications. Corresponding Poisson tensors and Casimir functions, which govern the phase flow and phase space structures of the system, are obtained in a differential geometric method. Equations of motion, as well as expressions of the force and torque, are derived in terms of potential derivatives. We uncover the underlying Lie group framework of the problem, and we also provide a systemic approach for equations of motion. By assuming that the gravitational field is axis-symmetrical and central, SO(2) and SO(3) symmetries are introduced into the general problem respectively. Using these symmetries, we carry out two reduction processes and work out the Poisson tensors of the reduced systems. Our results in the central gravitational filed are in consistent with previous results. By these reductions, we show how the symmetry of the problem affects the phase space structures. The tools of geometric mechanics used here provide an access to several powerful techniques, such as the determination of relative equilibria on the reduced system, the energy-Casimir method for determining the stability of equilibria, the variational integrators for greater accuracy in the numerical simulation and the geometric control theory for control problems.