Planar periodic orbit families around asteroid (16) Psyche

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José D. Gutiérrez, Alessandra Ferreira, Andre Amarante, Eva Tresaco, Andreza Martin

Icarus, In Press, Journal Pre-proof, Available online 17 June 2026

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“Highlights

  • Gravitational potential modeled with spherical harmonics up to 4th order.
  • Families of periodic orbits identified around Psyche.
  • Periodic orbits remain stable when propagated with the polyhedron gravity method.”

“NASA’s Psyche mission aims to explore asteroid (16) Psyche, a unique metallic body that offers an opportunity to explore planetary core formation and early Solar System processes. Beyond surface characterization and compositional studies, understanding the orbital dynamics around Psyche is crucial for ensuring spacecraft safety and optimizing operational planning. In this context, we investigate the periodic orbits around asteroid Psyche using an equivalent ellipsoidal model with semi-axes from its current 3-D polyhedral shape. We also analyzed the number, location, and stability of the equilibria, comparing them with those obtained using the polyhedron gravity method. As the density of Psyche remains unknown, we used a wide range of densities for this purpose. Our findings indicate that when the bulk density is 4.5 g/cm³, all equilibrium points are unstable. Nevertheless, as the density increases from 4.5 g/cm³ to 5.5 g/cm³ (ellipsoidal model), a saddle–center bifurcation shows up, transforming the equilibrium points E3, E4 into linearly stable centers. This behavior occurs only at densities greater than 5.5 g/cm³ for the polyhedral model. Additionally, we explore families of symmetric periodic orbits around asteroid Psyche, which may serve as potential stable trajectories for close flybys. We found 15 families of symmetric periodic orbits around it. Families m and l also have orbits that maintain similar stability around Psyche in both models (ellipsoidal and polyhedral). The identification of such orbits and their equilibrium points, including their stabilities, is essential for mission design.”

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