Mikhail Belichenko

This paper addresses the motion of a Lagrange top in a homogeneous gravitational field under the assumption that the suspension point of the top undergoes high-frequency vibrations with small amplitude in three-dimensional space. The laws of motion of the suspension point are supposed to allow vertical relative equilibria of the top’s symmetry axis. Within the framework of an approximate autonomous system of differential equations of motion written in canonical Hamiltonian form, pendulum-type motions of the top are considered. For these motions, its symmetry axis performs oscillations of pendulum type near the lower, upper or inclined relative equilibrium positions, rotations or asymptotic motions. Integration of the equation of pendulum motion of the top is carried out in the whole range of the problem parameters. The question of their orbital linear stability with respect to spatial perturbations is considered on the isoenergetic level corresponding to the unperturbed motions. The stability evolution of oscillations and rotations of the Lagrange top depending on the ratios between the intensities of the vertical, horizontal longitudinal and horizontal transverse components of vibration is described.

We consider the motion of Lagrange’s top with a suspension point performing the specified highfrequency periodic motion with small amplitude in three-dimensional space. The approximate autonomous system of equations of motion written in the form of canonical Hamiltonian equations is investigated. The problem of the existence and number of stationary rotations of the top about its dynamical symmetry axis is solved. The study of stability of the corresponding equilibrium positions of the reduced two-degree-of-freedom system for fixed values of the cyclic integral constant depending on the angular velocity of rotation is carried out. For suspension points’ motions allowing for stationary rotations about the vertical, a detailed linear and nonlinear stability analysis of these rotations and rotations about inclined axes is carried out. For a number of other cases of the suspension point motions a linear stability analysis is carried out.