30/abril/21 – Gravitational interactions among small Saturnian co-orbital bodies (Joseph A’Hearn, Universidade de Idaho)

While resonances determine the large-scale dynamical structure of planetary systems, interactions among the small bodies in these resonances alter their orbital evolution. We use numerical simulations to study the orbital evolution of interacting small bodies orbiting within two different locations in Saturn’s rings: the D68 ringlet and Aegaeon’s ring arc. Modeling the D68 clumps as co-orbital point-masses reveals the fragility of low-mass co-orbital satellite systems. Simulations of multiple massive bodies in a common corotation resonance site reveal the importance of interaction timescales for multi-body orbital dynamics.