arXiv subjects

J. C. Hafele

Publications and source records attributed to J. C. Hafele.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2012

Effects of the Sun's time-retarded gravitational field on the orbital motions of Mercury and Halley's Comet

The neoclassical causal version for Newton's acausal gravitational theory explains exactly the anomalous speed-changes observed for six Earth flybys and an anomalous lunar orbital speed-change (arXiv:1105.3857v10). This article estimates the effects of the neoclassical causal theory on the orbital motions of two objects revolving around the Sun, Mercury and Halley's Comet. The change in the period for Mercury is predicted to be about +1.86 ms per year, and the predicted change in the angle for perihelion is -0.032 arc seconds per century, for which the magnitude is negligible compared with the relativistic advance of +43 arc seconds per century. The period for Halley's Comet, 75.3 years, is predicted to decrease by about 10 minutes. Therefore, the neoclassical causal theory does not conflict with general relativity theory, and it is not the cause for a delay of one or two weeks in the return time of Halley's Comet.

physics.gen-ph↗

arXiv2012

Effect of the Earth's time-retarded transverse gravitational field on the motion of the Moon

Classical Newtonian gravitational theory does not satisfy the causality principle because it is based on instantaneous action-at-a-distance. A causal version of Newtonian theory for a large rotating sphere is derived herein by time-retarding the distance between interior circulating point-mass sources and an exterior field-point. The resulting causal theory explains exactly the flyby anomaly reported by NASA scientists in 2008. It also explains exactly an anomalous decrease in the Moon's orbital speed. No other known theory can make both of these claims.

physics.gen-ph↗

arXiv2011

Effect of the Earth's Time-Retarded Transverse Gravitational Field on Spacecraft Flybys

In 2008 a group of NASA scientists reported an anomalous change in the speed of six spacecraft flybys of the Earth. The reported speed change for the NEAR spacecraft flyby is 13.46+-0.01 mm/s. It is known that general relativity theory reduces to classical time-retarded electromagnetic field theory in the linearized approximation. This report shows that time-retarded field theory applied to the Earth's transverse gravitational field gives rise to a small change in the speed of a spacecraft during a flyby. The speed change depends on the time dependence of the transverse gravitational field, which generates an induction field that is proportional to the time derivative of the transverse gravitational field. If the corresponding speed for the induction field is set equal to (4.130+-0.003) times the Earth's equatorial rotational surface speed, and the speed of the Earth's gravitational field is set equal to (1.060+-0.001) times the vacuum speed of light, the calculated value for the speed change for the NEAR flyby agrees exactly with the observed value. Similar results are found for the remaining five flybys.

physics.gen-ph↗

arXiv2010

Instrument for Measuring the Earth's Time-Retarded Transverse Gravitational Vector Potential

Here within the basic design for a ground-based instrument for measuring the magnitude of the Earth's time-retarded transverse gravitational vector potential is described. The formula for the Earth's transverse vector potential is derived from the known formula for the neoclassical time-retarded transverse gravitational field (arXiv:0904.0383v2 [physics.gen-ph] 25May2010). The device senses the relativistic shift in the frequency of laser-diode oscillators set into circular motion at the tips of a two-arm rotor. The instrument employs fiber optics and a digital electronic interferometer/spectrometer to measure the effect of the relativistic time dilation on the frequency-modulated (FM) harmonic amplitudes in the beat signals between the tip-diodes and a stationary reference diode. The FM amplitudes depend on the orientation of the rotor. For the vertical-east-west orientation with a rotor frequency of 73.9 Hz, the predicted FM amplitudes for overtones at 148 Hz, 222 Hz, and 296 Hz are respectively 7x10^-10 Hz, 4x10^-11 Hz, and 9x10^-11 Hz. The overtones in the beat signals can be amplified and observed with a tunable FM digital audio amplifier. The measured values for the harmonics of the vector potential can be determined by back-calculating what the amplitudes must have been at the input to the amplifier. The instrument can be used to establish the speed of the Earth's gravitational field and to study the structure of the Earth's mantle and outer core.

physics.gen-ph↗