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Tracking And Impact Prediction Of Earth-Crossing-Objects (Ecos) On A Collision Course With Earth, Gregory A. Bishop

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the effectiveness of Earth-based angles only observations in determining the orbit of various hypothetical Earth-Crossing-Objects (ECOs). 'True' trajectories were simulated specifically for Earth-Crossing- Comets (ECCs) by numerically integrating in a Restricted Three Body system. Starting at Earth impact points, the state vectors were reverse-propagated" to a proposed detection time. Observations (obs), with state-of-the-art accuracy, were then simulated with error induced by a Gaussian random number generator; these were used in a least- squares differential corrector to estimate the positions of the ECOs. State vectors and covariance matrices were then propagated to the impact times and axis lengths …