Аннотация:Planar motion of an orbiting dumb-bell having a variable length in a
central field of gravity is under analysis. Within the so-called "satellite approximation" planar attitude dynamics is described by a non-autonomous equation of the
second order. The rule of the dumb-bell length vibrations implying an existence
of the radial and tangent relative equilibria for any value of the orbit eccentricity is proposed. Stability of the found relativer equilibria and chaoticity for total
dynamics are investigated.
Splitting of separatrices for the perturbed, with respect to the pendulum-like
motions, problem is established. This effect was proved not only for small eccentricities, but also for their finite values. Moreover, it turned out that the chaotic
dynamics of a dumb-bell with an invariable mass distribution, existing because of
the ellipticity of the orbit, cannot be suppressed with aid of periodic variations of
the mass distribution, or the dumb-bell length. Nevertheless one might observe
islands of regularity corresponding to librations of large amplitude demonstrating
stable behavior. These librations can be useful for the transportation operation in
the near-transversal directions of the dumb-bell orbital motion.