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Choreography SC.116

From Simó (2001)

Choreography SC.116 is a periodic orbit of the planar three-body problem: three equal masses that return to their starting positions and velocities every 11.982 time units, published by Simó (2001). Carles Simó’s catalogue of three-body choreographies with nonzero angular momentum, the curves that made choreographies famous. All unstable except the figure-eight. It is unstable (largest Floquet multiplier 91352), so a small nudge makes it unravel over a few periods. The bodies pass within 0.0676 of each other at a top speed of 4.17, line up 90 times a period, and the computed loop closes to 2.5×10⁻²⁸.

Measured over one period

Period: 11.98172438
Masses: 1 : 1 : 1
Energy: -4.50000
Angular momentum: 1.0309
Closest approach: 0.06763
Top speed: 4.172
Path length: 55.177
Alignments per period: 90
Stability: unstable (|λ|max 9.1×10⁶)
Loop closure: 2.5×10⁻²⁸

Neighbours on the map

All Simó’s choreographies, the families of periodic three-body orbits, or the atlas map.