Disintegration and separation of the bilobate-shaped meteoric fragment during hypersonic atmospheric entry

Ziwen Li, Yong Yu, Xiangyuan Zeng*, Haoyu Li, Tongge Wen, Xiaoran Yan

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

A novel method for simulating the disintegration of bilobate-shaped meteoric fragments is presented, which integrates aerodynamic interactions, rotational dynamics, structural strength, and ablation into the analysis. A disintegration criterion is proposed in this method, based on a comparison between the mechanism strength of the sintered bond and the required contact force to maintain the integrity of the bilobate shape. The disintegration of fragment 109 from the Morávka meteoroid, which deviates from the Weibull-like scaling law, is explained physically by applying this approach. Predictive numerical simulations are conducted by varying the initial attitudes, geometries, strengths, and angular velocities of the bilobate-shaped fragments. During atmospheric entry, variations in attitude, landing positions, and residual masses are analyzed as indicators of characteristics in the dynamical evolution.

Original languageEnglish
Article number116537
JournalIcarus
Volume433
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2025

Keywords

  • Asteroid dynamics
  • Asteroids
  • Disintegration
  • Impact process
  • Meteoroids

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