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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!whuxlm!harpo!decvax!linus!munck
From: munck@linus.UUCP (Robert Munck)
Newsgroups: net.astro,net.space,net.physics
Subject: Wanted: orbital mechanics program(s)
Message-ID: <411@linus.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 5-Jun-85 22:05:19 EDT
Article-I.D.: linus.411
Posted: Wed Jun  5 22:05:19 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 9-Jun-85 03:42:17 EDT
Reply-To: munck@linus.UUCP (Robert Munck)
Distribution: net
Organization: The MITRE Coporation, Bedford, MA
Lines: 26
Xref: watmath net.astro:653 net.space:4108 net.physics:2566


Now that I have the big AT with the arithmetic processor and good graphics
support, I'd like to put together something that will let me "play around"
with orbiting bodies of various kinds.  For example, I'd like to run a
simulation of the Earth-Moon system with a "skyhook" or two in place. 
(skyhook: a cable anchored on the equator and extending to a weight
at or beyond synchronous orbit; in effect, a bridge across the gravity
well (I know, we don't have cables that strong yet.))  Another example:
a long (hundreds of kilometers), thin structure in LEO, spinning in such
a way that the ends dip into the upper atmosphere at relatively low speed.

I don't want (yet) to simulate things like strength of materials, 
atmospheric friction, etc; just the mechanics of bodies with mass, shape,
velocity, and spin, influencing each other through gravity.  The ideal
form would be FORTRAN (Pascal) subroutines that accept an array of
current values and updates them for some small delta of time.  It doesn't
have to be accurate enough to predict planetary positions for the next
100,000 years, or efficient enough to handle all known solar bodies.

This is basically the beginnings of a "SF Writer's Workbench".  Given good
code, I'd hand-compile it for the 8087 to get the best speed I can.

(My "bridge across the gravity well" above isn't a very good analogy. Sorry.)
            -- Bob Munck, MITRE Corporation
               Munck@MITRE-Bedford.ARPA
               ...linus!bccvax!munck