Trajectories of Cosmic Bodies Depending on Their Configuration and Angles of Entry into the Earth’s Atmosphere

The specific features of flight of celestial bodies in the Earth’s atmosphere are studied, using mathematical modeling and numerical calculations, with regard to the motion of bodies about their center of mass. The ballistic parameters of strong spherical and elliptical bodies are compared in varying the parameters of their entry into the Earth’s atmosphere. It is found that, when flying in the atmosphere, the bodies with configuration close to the shape of an elongated ellipsoid tend to occupy a position at a certain angle to the flow. This affects the aerodynamic properties of the bodies. It was found that very different flight regimes are possible at small angles of entry of celestial bodies into the atmosphere when the body configurations differ from the “correct” (spherical) shape and the positions of the center of mass do not coincide with the center of the body shape.