The rotation of Europa (Q1776105)

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The rotation of Europa
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    The rotation of Europa (English)
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    20 May 2005
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    The Galilean satellites of Jupiter (Europa one of them) present the same face to the planet like the Moon. Cassini (1730) on a base of a simplified model of the rotation demonstrated how this peculiar feature correspond to the equilibrium (a Cassini's state). The perturbations from this model lead not to destabilization of this equilibrium but to excitation of librations around it. \textit{P. Goldreich} and \textit{S. Peale} [Astron. J. 71, 425--437 (1966), doi:10.1086/109947] have shoved that the fact that so many satellites are found in this special state is due to internal dissipations of energy in the satellites which drive them to it. Here, a semi-analytic theory of the rotation of Europe as a rigid body is presented. The theory is considered as a first step toward the modelization of non rigid Europe covered by an ocean.
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    rotation of celestial bodies
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    Europa
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    analytical theories
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    Cassini's laws
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