Minimum time spans for several orbital periods and braking laws with a = 3 a), a = 2 b) and a = 1 c). The noise level is fixed at the value of 0.01 d. Squares and circles account for the V82 and VVM89 approach, respectively. Crosses, downwards pointing and right triangles account for the A98 approach when short, intermediate and long coupling timescales are considered, respectively. d) The same as c) when the noise level is reduced at the value of 0.001 d. (This figure is available in color in the electronic form.)