A secular resonance is a type of orbital resonance. In celestial mechanics, an orbital resonance occurs when two orbiting bodies exert a regular, periodic gravitational influence on each other. ...

Secular resonances occur when the precession of two orbits is synchronised (a precession of the perihelion, of the ascending node, or both). A small body in secular resonance with a much larger one (e.g. a planet) will precess at the same rate as the large body. Over long times (a million years, or so) a secular resonance will change the eccentricity and inclination of the small body. Precession refers to a change in the direction of the axis of a rotating object. ... This article is about several astronomical terms (apogee & perigee, aphelion & perihelion, generic equivalents based on apsis, and related but rarer terms. ... The ascending node is one of the orbital nodes, a point in the orbit of an object where it crosses the plane of the ecliptic from the south celestial hemisphere to the north celestial hemisphere in the direction of motion. ... A planet is generally considered to be a relatively large mass of accreted matter in orbit around a star. ... Look up Eccentricity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Inclination in general is the angle between a reference plane and another plane or axis of direction. ...

The effects of secular resonances are most studied in the context of the long-time evolution (millions of years or more) of minor planet orbits within the Asteroid belt. Minor planets, or planetoids are minor bodies of the Solar system orbiting the Sun (or of other planetary systems orbiting other stars) that are larger than meteoroids (the largest of which might be taken to be around 10 meters or so across) but smaller than major planets (Mercury having a... Image of the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. ...

One can distinguish

• linear secular resonances between a body and a single other large perturbing body (e.g. a planet), and
• nonlinear secular resonances involving more than one large body.^[1]

ν₆ resonance

A prominent example of a linear resonance is the ν₆ secular resonance between asteroids and Saturn. Asteroids which approach it have their eccentricity slowly increased until they become mars-crossers, at which point they are usually ejected from the asteroid belt due to a close pass to Mars. This resonance forms the inner and "side" boundaries of the main asteroid belt around 2 AU, and at inclinations of about 20°. An asteroid is a small, solid object in our Solar System, orbiting the Sun. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... A Mars-crosser asteroid is an asteroid whose orbit crosses that of Mars. ... Image of the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. ... For the Roman god, see Mars (mythology). ... The asteroid belt is a region of the solar system falling roughly between the planets Mars and Jupiter where the greatest concentration of asteroid orbits can be found. ... The astronomical unit (AU or au or a. ... Inclination in general is the angle between a reference plane and another plane or axis of direction. ...

References

1. ^ V. Carruba et al (2005). "On the V-type asteroids outside the Vesta family". Astronomy & Astrophysics 441: 819.

See also

• orbital resonance
• Asteroid belt