Perturbation effect of solar radiation pressure on the Sun-Earth co-orbital motion

Abstract

Sun-Earth co-orbital motions have an important value in deep space explorations due to their unique orbital characteristics and spatial configurations. In this paper, we investigate the influence of the solar radiation pressure (SRP) on the Sun-Earth co-orbital motion. Firstly, we derive several analytical formulas of the effect of the SRP on orbital elements. Then, based on the analytical results, the orbital variables of perturbed distant retrograde orbits (DROs) and perturbed tadpole (TP) orbits around triangular libration points are studied, and the validity of those conclusions is demonstrated by numerical integration. Finally, we derive an approximate expression to analyze the drift trend of triangular libration points under the SRP and explain the drift phenomena of libration centers of perturbed co-orbital motions. The conclusions obtained in this paper could be used to design control laws of the perturbed Sun-Earth co-orbital motion in the future.