Searching for orbits around the triple asteroid 2001SN263

Abstract

The asteroid 2001SN263 is one of the possible targets of a proposed mission that would be the first Brazilian exploration in deep space, the Aster Mission. This asteroid is composed by three bodies: Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, in decreasing order of mass. For this study, it is proposed to split this triple system in two double systems: Alpha-Beta-spacecraft and Alpha-Gamma-spacecraft, all of them considered to be points of mass, such that it is possible to use the circular planar restricted three-body problem as the mathematical model. The goal is to find orbits that can be used by a spacecraft to observe the bodies Beta and Gamma. Each orbit can be identified by the initial conditions of the spacecraft with respect to Beta or Gamma: position and velocity. These orbits are classified by the minimum average distance spacecraft-celestial body. The results showed stable orbits around Beta and Gamma, with an average distance below 1.5 km, under the influence of the gravity of Alpha and the solar radiation pressure.