Simone Dell'Agnello — Page 2

arXiv2011

Constraining spacetime torsion with LAGEOS

We compute the corrections to the orbital Lense-Thirring effect (or frame-dragging) in the presence of spacetime torsion. We derive the equations of motion of a test body in the gravitational field of a rotating axisymmetric massive body, using the parametrized framework of Mao, Tegmark, Guth and Cabi. We calculate the secular variations of the longitudes of the node and of the pericenter. We also show how the LAser GEOdynamics Satellites (LAGEOS) can be used to constrain torsion parameters. We report the experimental constraints obtained using both the nodes and perigee measurements of the orbital Lense-Thirring effect. This makes LAGEOS and Gravity Probe B (GPB) complementary frame-dragging and torsion experiments, since they constrain three different combinations of torsion parameters.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2011

Constraining spacetime torsion with the Moon and Mercury

We report a search for new gravitational physics phenomena based on Einstein-Cartan theory of General Relativity including spacetime torsion. Starting from the parametrized torsion framework of Mao, Tegmark, Guth and Cabi, we analyze the motion of test bodies in the presence of torsion, and in particular we compute the corrections to the perihelion advance and to the orbital geodetic precession of a satellite. We describe the torsion field by means of three parameters, and we make use of the autoparallel trajectories, which in general may differ from geodesics when torsion is present. We derive the equations of motion of a test body in a spherically symmetric field, and the equations of motion of a satellite in the gravitational field of the Sun and the Earth. We calculate the secular variations of the longitudes of the node and of the pericenter of the satellite. The computed secular variations show how the corrections to the perihelion advance and to the orbital de Sitter effect depend on the torsion parameters. All computations are performed under the assumptions of weak field and slow motion. To test our predictions, we use the measurements of the Moon geodetic precession from lunar laser ranging data, and the measurements of Mercury's perihelion advance from planetary radar ranging data. These measurements are then used to constrain suitable linear combinations of the torsion parameters.

gr-qc↗