Resonance capture and resonance jump of the space debris with high area-to-mass ratio in the synchronous orbit region

Abstract

Space debris near the synchronous orbit poses significant collision risks to spacecraft in this area. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the orbital dynamics of space debris in order to predict its orbital evolution and prevent it from colliding with the spacecraft. Due to the combined effect of the dissipative forces and Earth’s 1:1 tesseral resonance, the space debris with high area-to-mass ratio near the synchronous orbit exhibits two special dynamical behaviors: resonance capture and resonance jump. By using a simplified model, this paper analyzes in detail the orbital evolution of the debris of the resonance capture and resonance jump, and explores the conditions for their occurrence. It is found that the dynamical behavior of space debris around the resonance capture or resonance jump is highly sensitive to its initial conditions. In addition, the long-term direct numerical integrations with the full dynamical model for the orbital evolution of the debris are performed. The difference between the phase space parameters of the resonance capture and resonance jump for space debris is discussed, and the pendulum-like oscillation of the resonant angle is also studied.