Space Dynamics (Advances in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 7) Book

This volume presents a comprehensive overview of celestial mechanics, providing the reader with a solid basis on which to build an understanding of the theory of interplanetary flights. Restricted three-body and N-body problems, the role of the Jacobi integral, perturbation theory and many other problems are described in a clear and user-friendly way. The theoretical development is fully detailed, first with reference to interplanetary missions past and present, from Pioneer and Voyager to Ulysses and Cassini and then considering notable astrophysical problems such as the equipotential surfaces of binary stars and star clusters and the distribution of the eccentricities of binary stars. Advanced topics such as solar sailing, low-thrust propulsion and periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon system, and new types of trajectories from Mars to Earth and Venus are presented. Recent developments in the discovery of extra-solar planets and chaos in the Solar system are also covered. The subject matter is presented in a clear and understandable way making it accessible to advanced undergraduates and graduate students of physics, astrophysics and mathematics.Read More