[FPSPACE] Mars and frame-dragging: study for a dedicated mission

[LARRY KLAES]

Mars and frame-dragging: study for a dedicated mission

Authors: Lorenzo Iorio

(Submitted on 10 Mar 2008)

Abstract: In this paper we preliminarily explore the possibility of 
designing a dedicated satellite-based mission to measure the general 
relativistic gravitomagnetic Lense-Thirring effect in the gravitational 
field of Mars. The focus is on the systematic error induced by the 
multipolar expansion of the areopotential and on possible strategies to 
reduce it. It turns out that the major sources of bias are the 
Mars’equatorial radius R and the even zonal harmonics J_L, L = 2,4,6… of the 
areopotential.

An optimal solution, in principle, consists of using two probes at 
high-altitudes (a\approx 9500-9600 km) and different inclinations, and 
suitably combining their nodes in order to entirely cancel out the bias due 
to \delta R. The remaining uncancelled mismodelled terms due to \delta J_L, 
L = 2,4,6,… would induce a bias \lesssim 1%, according to the present-day 
MGS95J gravity model, over a wide range of admissible values of the 
inclinations. The Lense-Thirring out-of-plane shifts of the two probes would 
amount to about 10 cm yr^-1.

Comments: LaTex2e, 15 pages, 5 figures, no tables

Subjects: General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc); Astrophysics 
(astro-ph); Space Physics (physics.space-ph)

Cite as: arXiv:0803.1286v1 [gr-qc]

Submission history

From: Lorenzo Iorio [view email]

[v1] Mon, 10 Mar 2008 18:51:12 GMT (607kb,D)

http://arxiv.org/abs/0803.1286