Symmetry and Circularization in the Damped Kepler Problem

Generically, a Hamiltonian system to which damping (non-Hamiltonian) forces are added loses its symmetry. It is a non-trivial fact that the eccentricity vector of lightly damped Kepler orbits is a constant for linear damping only. We describe the group theoretic background necessary to understand this fact and to relate it to that analogue of the Landau criterion for superfluidity associated with the general problem of orbit circularization.