https://doi.org/10.1140/epjs/s11734-025-01913-4
Regular Article
Orbital dynamics of space debris considering natural perturbations and resonance effects
1
IUMA, Universidad de Zaragoza, Pedro Cerbuna, 12, 50009, Zaragoza, Aragón, Spain
2
Centro de Ciência e Tecnologia em Energia e Sustentabilidade, Universidade Federal do Recôncavo da Bahia, Av. Centenário, 44042280, Feira de Santana, Bahia, Brazil
3
Institute of Science and Technology, Federal University of São Paulo, Av. Cesare Mansueto Giulio Lattes, 12247014, São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil
Received:
30
April
2025
Accepted:
1
September
2025
Published online:
8
September
2025
In this work, we analyzed the orbital evolution of space debris in low Earth orbits to identify unstable regions that could serve as reentry corridors and stable regions that could be used as graveyard orbits, taking into account the main natural orbital perturbations. An analytical study was conducted to identify resonant regions associated with the oblateness of the Earth and solar radiation pressure, as well as to determine resonant pairs of semimajor axis and inclination. Considering a simplified averaged model of the perturbing potential—which includes the effects of solar radiation pressure, Earth oblateness, and lunisolar perturbations—we numerically integrated the planetary Lagrange equations to analyze the evolution of the resonant orbital parameters obtained analytically. We identified resonance corridors that, combined with the deployment of a solar sail at the end of the mission, amplified the growth of the eccentricity, promoting the reduction of the orbital perigee. The results were presented through dynamic maps, which allowed the identification of stable regions for graveyard orbits and rapid reentry highways.
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© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to EDP Sciences, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2025
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
