Halo nuclei are formed when the last protons or neutrons are weakly bound to a tightly bound core. This allows the halo nucleons to tunnel far away from the core, resulting in a large r.m.s radius and therefore a large reaction cross section. Usually, halo nuclei possess only one bound state, the ground state, with all excited states being more or less unbound. When a nuclear potential is too weak to form a bound ground or excited state, the state can nevertheless be manifest physically as a positive energy resonance. Experimentally, low energy resonance like structures have been observed in the three-body continuum of certain halo nuclei eg. 6He → alpha + n + n. However, from a strict theoretical point of view, a resonance corresponds to a pole in the scattering amplitude at a complex energy. Halo nuclei have been successfully modelled as three-body systems in the hyper-spherical harmonic calculation scheme. Here the R-matrix method is used in solving the coupled hyperradial equations. It is critical that the long-range nature of the couplings in this system are incorporated correctly when evaluating the S-matrix. This is achieved through the use of coupled asymptotic solutions to the radial equation. These procedures have enabled a number of resonance-like S-matrix poles to be located for the 2+, 0+ and 1- spin-parity states in the low energy continuum of 6He.

Energias de ligação para excitons ligados por impurezas doadoras no ZnSe e CdS são calculadas pelo Método Adiabático Hiperesférico. Os acoplamentos não adiabáticos são incluídos na equação radial levando a valores de energias menores que os valores variacionais encontrados na literatura. Estados ressonantes, similares a estados autoionizantes em átomos de dois elétrons, são obtidos acima do primeiro limiar de ionização elétron-impureza. / Binding energy for excitons trapped by impurities in ZnSe and CdS are calculated withing the hyperspherical adiabatic approach. The non adiabatic couplings are included in the radial equations leading to energies lower than the variational values available in the literature. Resonant states similar to autoionizing lines in atoms are predicted to lie above the first electron-impurity ionization threshold.

The general station-keeping problem is a focal topic when considering any spacecraft mission application. Recent missions are increasingly requiring complex trajectories to satisfy mission requirements, necessitating the need for accurate station-keeping controllers. An ideal controller reliably corrects for spacecraft state error, minimizes the required propellant, and is computationally efficient. To that end, this investigation assesses the effectiveness of several controller formulations in the circular restricted three-body model. Particularly, a spacecraft is positioned in a L₁ southern halo orbit within the Sun-Earth Moon Barycenter system. To prevent the spacecraft from departing the vicinity of this reference halo orbit, the Floquet mode station-keeping approach is introduced and evaluated. While this control strategy generally succeeds in the station-keeping objective, a breakdown in performance is observed proportional to increases in state error. Therefore, a new hybrid controller is developed which leverages Floquet mode and reinforcement learning. The hybrid controller is observed to efficiently determine corrective maneuvers that consistently recover the reference orbit for all evaluated scenarios. A comparative analysis of the performance metrics of both control strategies is conducted, highlighting differences in the rates of success and the expected propellant costs. The performance comparison demonstrates a relative improvement in the ability of the hybrid controller to meet the mission objectives, and suggests the applicability of reinforcement learning to the station-keeping problem.

With the growth of human interest in the Lunar region, methods of enabling Lunar access including surface and Low Lunar Orbit (LLO) from periodic orbit in the Lunar region is becoming more important. The current investigation explores the Lunar access capabilities of these periodic orbits. Impact trajectories originating from the 9:2 Lunar Synodic Resonant (LSR) Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO) are determined through explicit propagation and mapping of initial conditions formed by applying small maneuvers at locations across the orbit. These trajectories yielding desirable Lunar impact final conditions are then used to converge impacting transfers from the NRHO to Shackleton crater near the Lunar south pole. The stability of periodic orbits in the Lunar region is analyzed through application of a stability index and time constant. The Lunar access capabilities of the Lunar region periodic orbits found to be sufficiently unstable are then analyzed through impact and periapse maps. Using the impact data, candidate periodic orbits are incorporated in the the NRHO to Shackleton crater mission design to control mission geometry. Finally, the periapse map data is used to determine periodic orbits with desirable apse conditions that are then used to design NRHO to LLO transfer trajectories.

No description available.

<p dir="ltr">This research considers orbit maintenance strategies for multi-body orbits in the context of the Earth-Moon Circular Restricted Three Body Problem (CR3BP). Dynamical requirements for successful long-term orbit maintenance strategies are highlighted.</p>

La découverte de planètes extrasolaires d'excentricités importantes ravive l'intérêt pour la dynamique des systèmes planétaires. Ce travail a pour objet l'étude analytique du problème séculaire des trois corps, grâce à une généralisation de la théorie de Laplace-Lagrange obtenue en poussant le développement de la perturbation à un ordre largement supérieur en excentricités et en inclinaisons. Nous montrons que cette approche est apte à décrire la dynamique séculaire d'un système planétaire formé de deux planètes hors résonance en moyen mouvement. Une vérification analytique de la proximité du système à une quelconque résonance en moyen mouvement est également entreprise. Tant dans le cas de systèmes coplanaires que de systèmes tridimensionnels, deux optiques sont poursuivies: d'une part, l'analyse des équilibres du problème séculaire et des implications de ces derniers sur la structure de l'espace de phase et d'autre part, le calcul des fréquences fondamentales de ce même problème permettant la reproduction de l'évolution temporelle du système planétaire, grâce à une méthode totalement analytique basée sur les transformées de Lie. Nous disposons ainsi d'un modèle analytique fiable et peu coûteux pouvant prendre en compte un large éventail de paramètres et qui peut être appliqué avec précision aux systèmes extrasolaires hors résonance en moyen mouvement. / The discovery of extrasolar planets with large eccentricities renews interest in the study of the dynamics of planetary systems. This work is concerned with the analytical study of the secular three-body problem by means of a generalization of the Laplace-Lagrange theory based on a high-order expansion of the disturbing potential in the eccentricities and the inclinations. We show that this approach is able to describe the secular dynamics of a two-planets system not close to a mean motion resonance. The proximity of a system to any mean motion resonance is also analytically investigated. For coplanar and tridimensional systems, we pursue a twofold objective: on the one hand, the study of the equilibria of the secular problem and their implications on the structure of the phase space and on the other hand, the computation of both the fundamental frequencies of the problem and the long-term time evolution of the planetary system with a totally analytical method based on Lie transforms. This reliable time-saving analytical model can take into account a large spectrum of parameters and can be applied successfully to non-resonant extrasolar systems.

This study focuses on the Sun's influence on the motion near the triangular libration points of the Earth-Moon system. It is known that there exists a very strong resonant perturbation near those points that produces large deviations from the libration points, with an amplitude of about 250,000 km and a period of 1,500 days. However, it has been shown that it is possible to find initial conditions that negate the effects of that perturbation, even resulting in stable, although very large, periodic orbits. Using two different models, the goal of this research is to determine the initial configurations of the Earth-Moon-Sun system that produce minimal deviations from the libration points, and to provide a better understanding of the dynamics of this highly nonlinear problem. First, the Bicircular Problem (BCP) is considered, which is an idealized model of the Earth-Moon-Sun System. The impact of the initial configuration of the Earth-Moon-Sun system is studied for various propagation times and it is found that there exist two initial configurations that produce minimal deviations from L₄ or L₅. The resulting trajectories are very sensitive to the initial configuration, as the mean deviation from the libration points can decrease by 30,000 km with less than a degree change in the initial configuration. Two critical initial configurations of the system were identified that could allow a particle to remain within 30,000 km of the libration points for as long as desired. A more realistic model, based on JPL ephemerides, is also used, and the influence of the initial epoch on the motion near the triangular points is studied. Through the year 2007, 51 epochs are found that produce apparently stable librational motion near L₄, and 60 near L₅. But the motion observed depends greatly on the initial epoch. Some epochs are even found to significantly reduce the deviation from L₄ and L₅, with the spacecraft remaining within at most 90,000 km from the triangular points for upwards of 3,000 days. Similarly to what was observed in the BCP, these trajectories are found to be extremely sensitive to the initial epoch. / text

L'ensemble des travaux menés au cours de cette thèse concerne l'étude de la résonance co-orbitale. Ce domaine de trajectoires particulières, où un astéroïde et une planète gravitent autour du Soleil avec la même période de révolution, possède une dynamique très riche liée aux célèbres configurations équilatérales de Lagrange, L4 et L5, ainsi qu'aux configurations alignées de Euler, L1, L2 et L3. Un exemple majeur dans le système solaire est donné par les astéroïdes « troyens » qui accompagnent Jupiter au voisinage des équilibres L4 et L5. Une deuxième configuration étonnante est donnée par les satellites Janus et Épiméthée qui gravitent autour de la planète Saturne ; suite à la forme décrite par la trajectoire d’un des satellites dans un repère tournant avec l’autre, la dynamique résultante est appelée « fer-à-cheval ». Un nouveau type de dynamique a été récemment misen évidence dans le contexte de la résonance coorbitale : les « quasi-satellites ». Il s’agit de configurations remarquables où, dans un repère tournant avec la planète, la trajectoire de l’astéroïde correspond à celle d’un satellite rétrograde. Des astéroïdes accompagnant les planètes Venus, Jupiter et la Terre ont notamment été observés dans ces configurations. La dynamique des quasi-satellites possède un grand intérêt, pas seulement parce qu’elle relie les différents domaines de la résonance co-orbitale (voir les travaux de Namouni, 1999) mais aussi parce qu’elle semble faire le pont entre les notions de satellisation et celles de trajectoires héliocentriques. Cependant, bien que le terme « quasi-satellite" soit devenu dominant dans la communauté de mécanique céleste, certains auteurs utilisent plutôt la terminologie « satellite rétrograde » révélant ainsi une ambiguïté sur la définition de ces trajectoires. Les récentes découvertes autour des exo-planètes ont motivé le développement de travaux concernant la résonance co-orbitale dans le problème des trois corps planétaire. Dans ce contexte Giuppone et al. (2010) ont mis en évidence (par une méthode numérique) les quasisatellites ainsi que des nouvelles familles de configurations remarquables : les orbites « anti-Lagrange ». La troisième partie de thèse présente alors une méthode analytique pour l'étude planétaire, permettant de révéler analytiquement les orbites anti-Lagrange ainsi qu'une esquisse d'étude des quasisatellites en adaptant à ce contexte plus général la méthode présentée dans la seconde partie. Pour ces raisons, la première partie de cette thèse a consisté à clarifier la définition de ces orbites en revisitant le cas circulaire-plan (trajectoires coplanaires avec la planète qui gravite sur une orbite circulaire) dans le cadre du problème moyen. Dans la deuxième partie de cette thèse, nous avons développé une méthode analytique apte à explorer le domaine des quasi-satellites dans le cadre du problème moyen. Nous avons réalisé cette exploration dans le cas circulaire-plan et proposé une extension aux cas excentrique-plan et circulaire-spatial. / This work of thesis focuses on the study of the coorbital resonance. This domain of particular trajectories, where an asteroid and a planet gravitate around the Sun with the same period possesses a very rich dynamics connected to the famous Lagrange’s equilateral configurations L4 and L5, as well as to the Eulerian’s configurations L1, L2 and L3. A major example in the solar system is given by the “Trojan” asteroids harboured by Jupiter in the neighborhood of L4 and L5. A second astonishing configuration is given by the system Saturn-Janus-Epimetheus; this peculiar dynamics is known as “horseshoe”. Recently, a new type of dynamics has been highlighted in the context of co-orbital resonance: the quasi-satellites. They correspond to remarkable configurations : in the rotating frame with the planet, the trajectory of the asteroid seems the one of a retrograde satellite. Some asteroids harboured by Venus, Jupiter and the Earth have been observed in this kind of configuration. The quasi-satellite dynamics possesses great interest not only because it connects the different domains of the co-orbital resonance (see works of Namouni, 1999), but also because it seems to bridge the gap between satellization and heliocentric trajectories. However, despite the term quasi-satellite has become dominant in the celestial mechanics community, some authors rather use the term “retrograde satellite”. This reveals an ambiguity on the definition of these trajectories. For these reasons, the first part of this thesis consisted in clarifying the definition of these orbits by revisiting the planar-circular case (planet on circular motion) in the framework of the averaged problem. In the second part of this thesis, we developed an analytic method to explore the quasi-satellite domain in the averaged problem. We realized this exploration in the planar-circular case and proposed an extension to the planar-eccentric and spatial-circular cases. The recent discoveries around the exo-planets motivated some works on the co-orbital resonance in the planetary Three-Body Problem. In this context, Giuppone et al. (2010) highlighted (numerically) the quasi-satellite as well as new families of remarkable configurations: the “anti-Lagrange”. Then the third part of this thesis presents an analytical method for the planetary problem that allows to reveal the anti-Lagrange orbits as well as a sketch of study of quasi-satellite trajectories.

<div> <div> <div> <p>Resonant orbits in a multi-body environment have been investigated in the past to aid the understanding of perceived chaotic behavior in the solar system. The invariant manifolds associated with resonant orbits have also been recently incorporated into the design of trajectories requiring reduced maneuver costs. Poincaré sections are now also extensively utilized in the search for novel, maneuver-free trajectories in various systems. This investigation employs dynamical systems techniques in the computation and characterization of resonant orbits in the higher-fidelity Circular Restricted Three-Body model. Differential corrections and numerical methods are widely leveraged in this analysis in the determination of orbits corresponding to different resonance ratios. The versatility of resonant orbits in the design of low cost trajectories to support exploration for several planet-moon systems is demonstrated. The efficacy of the resonant orbits is illustrated via transfer trajectory design in the Earth-Moon, Saturn-Titan, and the Mars-Deimos systems. Lastly, Poincaré sections associated with different resonance ratios are incorporated into the search for natural, maneuver-free trajectories in the Saturn-Titan system. To that end, homoclinic and heteroclinic trajectories are constructed. Additionally, chains of periodic orbits that mimic the geometries for two different resonant ratios are examined, i.e., periodic orbits that cycle between different resonances are determined. The tools and techniques demonstrated in this investigation are useful for the design of trajectories in several different systems within the CR3BP. </p> </div> </div> </div>