Regularity and reentry basins of low Earth orbits in the J2-solar radiation pressure problem
Abstract
We numerically investigate the long-term dynamical structure of low Earth orbits (LEOs) using the Smaller Alignment Index (SALI), a fast numerical indicator of chaos, within a closed-form averaged model that incorporates the effects of solar radiation pressure and Earth's oblateness. Our analysis reveals that the area-to-mass ratio is a key parameter governing the onset and extent of chaotic behavior in LEOs. We map the system's chaotic regions, study the behavior of reentry trajectories and characterize their temporal laws over a timescale constrained by the $25$-year mitigation guideline. Within this physically relevant timescale, we show that most of the reentry trajectories exhibit regular motion. Reentry basins, constructed according to different mitigation guidelines up to $25$ years, display fractal-like structures for less-stringent guidelines. The degree of this fractality is quantitatively assessed using the uncertainty exponent method. In most cases, for large area-to-mass ratios, reentry occurs on relatively short timescales (a few years) - short enough that no fractal behavior is observed in the basin boundaries. This numerical dynamical study offers insights into the development of dynamically informed deorbiting strategies.
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BibTeX
@misc{barbis2026regularity,
title = {{Regularity and reentry basins of low Earth orbits in the $J_2$-solar radiation pressure problem}},
author = {Cassandra Barbis and Jerome Daquin and Elisa Maria Alessi and Charalampos Skokos},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2605.24575},
eprint = {2605.24575},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.24575},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Regularity and reentry basins of low Earth orbits in the J_2-solar radiation pressure problem
AU - Cassandra Barbis
AU - Jerome Daquin
AU - Elisa Maria Alessi
AU - Charalampos Skokos
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/02
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2605.24575
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.24575
AB - We numerically investigate the long-term dynamical structure of low Earth orbits (LEOs) using the Smaller Alignment Index (SALI), a fast numerical indicator of chaos, within a closed-form averaged model that incorporates the effects of solar radiation pressure and Earth's oblateness. Our analysis reveals that the area-to-mass ratio is a key parameter governing the onset and extent of chaotic behavior in LEOs. We map the system's chaotic regions, study the behavior of reentry trajectories and characterize their temporal laws over a timescale constrained by the $25$-year mitigation guideline. Within this physically relevant timescale, we show that most of the reentry trajectories exhibit regular motion. Reentry basins, constructed according to different mitigation guidelines up to $25$ years, display fractal-like structures for less-stringent guidelines. The degree of this fractality is quantitatively assessed using the uncertainty exponent method. In most cases, for large area-to-mass ratios, reentry occurs on relatively short timescales (a few years) - short enough that no fractal behavior is observed in the basin boundaries. This numerical dynamical study offers insights into the development of dynamically informed deorbiting strategies.
ER -