TRAJECTORIES OF AN UNGUIDED PROBE
WITH A DAMPING CABLE

S. A. Shargarovskii and A. N. Temnov

UDC 629.7.087.22

The relative orbital motion of two point masses connected 
by a flexible nonexpadable weightless cord with shock contacts is 
considered. This system models, for example, the dynamics of a satellite 
and a probe connected by a cable. The orbit of the center of mass 
is assumed to be circular. The motion of the probe relative to the 
center of mass can be presented as a series of portions of free motion 
between successive contacts, i.e., as the probe recedes from the satellite 
to a distance equal to the cable length. At the time of establishing 
contact, there is shock interaction, which can be of various nature 
 - perfectly elastic, perfectly inelastic, and with partial absorption 
of energy.

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