A perturbative treatment of the co-orbital motion (Q1610304)

The authors develop a theory of perturbation of a largely eccentric planet's orbit or a highly inclined orbit of a small body. The theory is applied to the perturbed motion of a small body orbiting the central body (Sun) with a period equal to that of the perturbing body (planet). The orbits of these two bodies are characterized by 1/1 mean motion resonance. This situation is known as the `co-orbital' motion. The non-singular canonical variables for the 1/1 commensurability are introduced. The perturbing function as a function of these variables has no singularities at the eccentricity \(e= 0\) and/or the inclination \(i= 0\). The theory is also used in the restricted three-body: planar-circular, planar-elliptic and special-circular models. The secular evolution of the elements and the phase portrait of co-orbital trajectories are shown on figures for different eccentricities and inclinations. New types of orbits become possible. The trajectories having transitions are chaotic and generally unstable.