216 research outputs found
Geophysical interpretation of Venus gravity data
The investigation of the subsurface mass distribution of Venus through the analysis of the data from Pioneer Venus Orbiter (PVO) is presented. The Doppler tracking data was used to map the gravitational potential, which was compared to the topographic data from the PVO radar (ORAD). In order to obtain an unbiased comparison, the topography obtained from the PVO-ORAD was filtered to introduce distortions which are the same as those of our gravity models. The last major software package that was required in order to determine the spectral admittance Z (lambda) was used. This package solves the forward problem: given the topography and its density, and assuming no compensation, find the resulting spacecraft acceleration along a given nominal trajectory. The filtered topography is obtained by processing these accelerations in the same way (i.e., with the same geophysical inverter) as the Doppler-rate data that we use to estimate the gravity maps
Optical interferometers for tests of relativistic gravity in space
A space-based astrometric interferometer with a large optical bandwidth is considered. POINTS (Precision Optical INTerferometry in Space) would measure the angular separation of two stars separated by about 90 deg on the sky with a nominal measurement error of 5 microarcseconds (mas). For a pair of mag 10 stars, the observation would require about 10 minutes. It is estimated that the instrument would measure daily the separation of two stars for each of about 60 pairs of stars; a random sequence of such measurements, if suitably redundant, contains the closure information necessary to detect and correct time dependent measurement biases to well below the nominal measurement accuracy. The 90 deg target separation permits absolute parallax measurements in all directions. A redundant observing schedule for 300 stars and 5 quasars would provide extra redundancy to compensate for the quasars' higher magnitude. If a nominal 30-day observation sequence were repeated 4 times per year for 10 years, stellar parameter uncertainties would be obtained of: 0.6 mas, position; 0.4 mas/y, proper motion; and 0.4 mas, parallax. This set of well-observed stars and quasars would form a rigid frame and the stars would serve as reference objects for measurements of all additional targets, as well as being targets of direct scientific interest. The instrument global data analysis since objectives are considered including a relativity test and technology
Prospects for Large Relativity Violations in Matter-Gravity Couplings
Deviations from relativity are tightly constrained by numerous experiments. A
class of unmeasured and potentially large violations is presented that can be
tested in the laboratory only via weak gravity couplings. Specialized highly
sensitive experiments could achieve measurements of the corresponding effects.
A single constraint of 1 x 10^{-11} GeV is extracted on one combination of the
12 possible effects in ordinary matter. Estimates are provided for attainable
sensitivities in existing and future experiments.Comment: 10 page
Weak Equivalence Principle Test on a Sounding Rocket
SR-POEM, our principle of equivalence measurement on a sounding rocket, will
compare the free fall rate of two substances yielding an uncertainty of E-16 in
the estimate of \eta. During the past two years, the design concept has matured
and we have been working on the required technology, including a laser gauge
that is self aligning and able to reach 0.1 pm per root hertz for periods up to
40 s. We describe the status and plans for this project.Comment: Presented at the Fifth Meeting on CPT and Lorentz Symmetry,
Bloomington, Indiana, June 28-July 2, 201
Friedmann Equation for Brans Dicke Cosmology
In the context of Brans-Dicke scalar tensor theory of gravitation, the
cosmological Friedmann equation which relates the expansion rate of the
universe to the various fractions of energy density is analyzed rigorously. It
is shown that Brans-Dicke scalar tensor theory of gravitation brings a
negligible correction to the matter density component of Friedmann equation.
Besides, in addition to and in standard
Einstein cosmology, another density parameter, , is
expected by the theory. This implies that if is found to
be nonzero, data will favor this model instead of the standard Einstein
cosmological model with cosmological constant and will enable more accurate
predictions for the rate of change of Newtonian gravitational constant in the
future.Comment: minor reference change
Long-Term Clustering, Scaling, and Universality in the Temporal Occurrence of Earthquakes
Scaling analysis reveals striking regularities in earthquake occurrence. The
time between any one earthquake and that following it is random, but it is
described by the same universal-probability distribution for any spatial region
and magnitude range considered. When time is expressed in rescaled units, set
by the averaged seismic activity, the self-similar nature of the process
becomes apparent. The form of the probability distribution reveals that
earthquakes tend to cluster in time, beyond the duration of aftershock
sequences. Furthermore, if aftershock sequences are analysed in an analogous
way, yet taking into account the fact that seismic activity is not constant but
decays in time, the same universal distribution is found for the rescaled time
between events.Comment: short paper, only 2 figure
A critical-density closed Universe in Brans-Dicke theory
In a Brans-Dicke (BD) cosmological model, the energy density associated with
some scalar field decreases as \displaystyle a^{{-2}(\frac{\omega_{o}+
{\frac12}%}{\omega_{o}+1})} with the scale factor of the Universe,
giving a matter with an Equation of state . In this model, the Universe
could be closed but still have a nonrelativistic-matter density corresponding
to its critical value, . Different cosmological expressions, such
as, luminosity distance, angular diameter, number count and ratio of the
redshift tickness-angular size, are determined in terms of the redshift for
this model.Comment: To appear in MNRAS, 7 pages, 5 eps figure
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