The distribution of 1/a in photographic meteor orbits

Abstract

The distribution of reciprocal semi-major axes in photographic meteor orbits is studied. A detailed classification of the orbits is made according to quality. The distribution of 1/a in precise orbits is multimodal with two broad maxima approximately centered on 0.05 and 0.40 (AU)/1. Minima in the distribution appear near 0.20 and 0.66 (AU)/1 corresponding to Jupiter's and Mars' position in the 1/a diagram. Considerable fine structure appears in the 1/a distribution. Resonance gaps corresponding to commensurabilities with Jupiter are detected. The gaps are similar to the well studied Kirkwood gaps in the asteroid belt