Abstract. A method of calculating the temperature of isothermal space object of spherical shape with high thermal inertia, moving in elliptical orbits in the plane of the terminator, is proposed. A criterion is formulated for a space object to be assigned to the class of objects with large thermal inertia. For these objects, the characteristic dimensions are introduced that define the total heat capacity and, accordingly, the constant thermal inertia. The possibility of substitution a real elliptic orbit in the mathematical model by equivalent circular orbit is demonstrated. The fact allows to replace the calculations of transient temperatures of heavy space objects with calculation of their steady-state temperatures almost without loss of accuracy. The approximation leads to solution of algebraic equations instead of the differential equation of the model. Thus, accurate enough values of the height of equivalent circular orbit are obtained depending on the height of the apogee of the initial elliptical orbit.

Keywords: space object, irradiation coefficient, thermal balance of object in a near-earth space, thermal radiation of the Earth, thermal inertia of space object

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