Separation of two meteoroid fragments during the flight in the atmosphere.

A problem of two bodies separating in the atmosphere during supersonic flight was studied using multigrid method of modeling dynamics. Two main configurations were taken into consideration. When two fragments were initially located on the line perpendicular to the direction of the flight, they separated from each other symmetrically and acquired the same absolute value of lateral velocity. When fragments were initially located one behind another with a certain distance between them, collimation effect was observed with the lagging fragment moving into the near wake area of the leading body. A series of consequential collisions of bodies occurred with the distance between fragments decreasing over time in the case of inelastic impact. Eventually the system transitioned to the state of the joint flight of two bodies one directly behind the other. Over time numerical disturbances lead to the break of symmetry with fragments sliding against each other and then separating in lateral direction. The separation velocity of the leading body was significantly higher for this configuration. The joint flight of two bodies behind each other was found to be unstable unless the lagging fragment had smaller size than leading body. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]