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arXiv · 1505.06884

The flyby anomaly: A case for strong gravitomagnetism ?

L. Acedo
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Abstract

In the last two decades an anomalous variation in the asymptotic velocity of spacecraft performing a flyby manoeuvre around Earth has been discovered through careful Doppler tracking and orbital analysis. No viable hypothesis for a conventional explanation of this effect has been proposed and its origin remains unexplained. In this paper we discuss a strong transversal component of the gravitomagnetic field as a possible source of the flyby anomaly. We show that the perturbations induced by such a field could fit the anomalies both in sign and order of magnitude. But, although the secular contributions to the Gravity Probe B experimental results and the Lense-Thirring effect in geodynamics satellites can be made null, the detailed orbital evolution is easily in conflict with such an enhanced gravitomagnetic effect.

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L. Acedo. 2015-05-26. The flyby anomaly: A case for strong gravitomagnetism ?. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asr.2014.04.014

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