Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-22dnz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-28T22:23:49.711Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Radar determination of the Astronomical Unit

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 August 2015

Irwin Shapiro
Irwin Shapiro*
Affiliation:
Lincoln Laboratory(1), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Lexington, Mass., U. S. A.

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

A comprehensive review is given of the Earth-Venus measurements made with the Lincoln Laboratory Millstone radar in 1959 and 1961. The time-delay and Doppler shift data yield a value for the Astronomical Unit of 499.0052 ± 0.001 light-sec. Using 299 792.5 km/s for the speed of light leads to an AU of 149 598 000 ± 300 km. With the radius of Earth taken as 6 378.15 km, the solar parallax then becomes 8″.79416 ± 0″.00002. This value is consistent with measurements made at various other laboratories to about one part in 105.

Résumé. — L'auteur donne une description complète des mesures de la distance Terre-Vénus faites par le radar Millstone en 1959-1961. Le temps de parcours des ondes et le décalage Doppler donnent, pour l'unité astronomique 499,0052 ± 0,001 secondes de lumière, soit 149 598 000 ± 300 km avec c = 299 792,5 km/s. Avec un rayon terrestre de 6 378,15 km, la parallaxe solaire devient 8″,79416 ± 0″,00002. Ces résultats s'accordent avec ceux d'autres laboratoires à 10−5 près.

Zusammenfassung. — Es wird ein vollständiger Überblick über die Bestimmungen der Entfernung Erde-Venus gegeben, die mit dem Millstone-Radargerät des Lincoln Laboratory in den Jahren 1959 und 1961 durchgeführt wurden. Die Messungen der Laufzeit und der Doppler-Verschiebung ergeben einen Wert von 499,0052 ± 0,001 Lichtsekunden für die Astronomische Einheit; das entspricht 149 598 000 ± 300 km bei einer Lichtgeschwindigkeit von 299 792,5 km. Bei Annahme des Erdradius zu 6 378,15 km wird die Sonnenparallaxe dann 8″,79416 ± 0″,00002. Dieser Wert stimmt auf etwa 1 : 105 mit den Messungen an verschiedenen anderen Laboratorien überein.

Резюме. — Автор подробно описывает измерения расстояния между Землей и Венерой при помощи радара Мильстон в 1959 и 1961гг. Метод времени распространения волн также как и метод смещения частот по Допплеру, дали следущие значения астрономической единицы: 499,0052±0,001 секунд света, то-есть, пологая с 299 792,5 км/с, 149 598 000 ± 300 км. Принимая 6 378,15 км для радмуса Земли, получаем для солнечного параллакса, 8"79416±0″00001. Эти результаты согласуются с точностью до 10 −5 с результатами других лабораторий.

Type
Research Article
Information
Symposium - International Astronomical Union , Volume 21: The System of Astronomical Constants , 1965 , pp. 177 - 215
Copyright
Copyright © CNRS 1965 

References

[1] Pettengill, G. H. et al., Astron. J. , vol. 67, 1962, p. 181.Google Scholar
[2] Smith, W. B., Astron. J. , vol. 68, 1963, p. 15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
[3] Price, R. et al., Science , vol. 129, 1959, p. 761.Google Scholar
[4] Rabe, E., Astron. J. , vol. 59, 1954, p. 409.Google Scholar
[5] Evans, J. V., Private communication, 1963.Google Scholar
[6] Victor, W. K. and Stevens, R., Science , vol. 134, 1961, p. 46.Google Scholar
[7] Klemperer, W., Private communication, 1963.Google Scholar
[8] de Vaucouleurs, G. and Menzel, D. H., Nature , vol. 188, 1960, p. 28.Google Scholar
[9] Rutledge, C. K. et al., Precise long range Radar distance measuring techniques (Convair report No. AE 61-0061, 1961).Google Scholar
[10] Evans, J. V. and Taylor, G. N., Proc. Roy. Soc., A, vol. 263, 1961, p. 189.Google Scholar
[11] Duncombe, R. L., Astron. J. , vol. 61, 1956, p. 266.Google Scholar
[12] Clemence, G. M., Astron. J. , vol. 67, 1962, p. 379.Google Scholar
[13] U. S. Naval Observatory, Astron. Papers of the American Ephemeris , vol. 14, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington D. C., 1953.Google Scholar
[14] U. S. Naval Observatory, Astron. Papers of the American Ephemeris , vol. 15, Part III, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington D. C., 1955.Google Scholar
[15] Clemence, G. M. and Brouwer, D., Astron. J. , vol. 60, 1955, p. 118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
[16] Muhleman, D. O. et al., Astron. J. , vol. 67, 1962, p. 191.Google Scholar
[17] Maron, I. et al., Science , vol. 134, 1961, p. 1419.Google Scholar
[18] Muhleman, D. O., Private communication, 1963.Google Scholar
[19] Priester, W. et al., Nature , vol. 196, 1962, p. 464.Google Scholar
[20] Spencer Jones, H., The Earth as a Planet (éd.: Kuiper U. of Chicago, Chicago, 1954, p. 17).Google Scholar
[21] Kaula, W., Private communication, 1962.Google Scholar
[22] Froome, K. D., Nature , vol. 181, 1958, p. 258.Google Scholar
[23] Maron, I., Private communication, 1963.Google Scholar
[24] Thomson, J. H. et al., Nature , vol. 190, 1961, p. 519.Google Scholar
[25] Kotelnikov, V. A. et al., Radar Observations of the planet Venus in the Soviet Union in April 1961 (Sc. Rept. of Inst. of Radio Eng. and Electr., Moscow, 1961).Google Scholar
[26] Kotelnikov, V. A., Private communication, 1963.Google Scholar
[27] Kotelnikov, V. A. et al., Dokl. Acad. Sc. U. R. S. S. , vol. 147, 1962, p. 1320.Google Scholar