Authors: Shor V A
Year: 1976
Title: Motion of the Martian satellites from 1877 to 1973 and new systems of their orbital parameters (In Russian)
Journal: Institut Teoreticheskoi Astronomii Trudy
Number: 15
Pages: 91-113
Keywords: Mars, Phobos, Deimos , observation, theory, analytical, analysis
Abstract: The motions of Phobos and Deimos in the period from 1877 to 1973 are studied using more than 4900 observations of the satellites. The orbital elements of Phobos and Deimos are determined at 21 and 25 oppositions, respectively. Secular variations in the elements are found by comparing the elements obtained at different oppositions, and revised systems of parameters are derived for Struve's (1898) theory of Martian-satellite motion. A secular acceleration in longitude is confirmed for Phobos, and the coefficient of the quadratic term in Phobos' longitude is determined with an accuracy of roughly 10%. It is shown that the secular acceleration of Deimos is quite small and cannot be determined accurately. The satellite longitudes calculated with allowance for secular accelerations are found to represent well the satellite positions obtained from Mariner 9 television pictures. Parameters of the Martian gravitational field and the position of the planet's North Pole are also determined.
Bibliogaphic Code: 1976TrITA..15...91S
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