Searching for new physics in the solar system with tetrahedral spacecraft formations
Physical Review D(2024)
摘要
Tetrahedral configurations of spacecraft on unperturbed heliocentric orbits
allow for highly precise observations of small spatial changes in the
gravitational field, especially those affecting the gravity gradient tensor
(GGT). The resulting high sensitivity may be used to search for new physics
that could manifest itself via deviations from general relativistic behavior
yielding a non-vanishing trace[GGT]. We study the feasibility of recovering the
trace[GGT] with the sensitivity of O(1e-24 s^(-2)) – the level where some of
the recently proposed cosmological models may have observable effects in the
solar system. We consider how local measurements provided by precision laser
ranging and atom-wave interferometry can be used for that purpose. We report on
a preliminary study of such an experiment and precision that may be reached in
measuring the trace[GGT], with the assumption of drag-compensated spacecraft by
atom interferometer measurements. For that, we study the dynamical behavior of
a tetrahedral formation established by four spacecraft on heliocentric nearby
elliptical orbits. We formulate the observational equations to measure the
trace[GGT] relying only on the observables available within the formation:
laser ranging and the Sagnac interferometry. We demonstrate that Sagnac
observable is a mission enabling and allows to measure the angular frequency of
the tetrahedral rotation with respect to an inertial reference frame with an
accuracy much higher than that available from any other modern navigational
techniques. We show that the quality of the science measurements is affected by
the changes in tetrahedron's orientation and shape as spacecraft follow their
orbits. We present the preliminary mission and instrument requirements needed
to measure the trace[GGT] to the required accuracy and demonstrate the
feasibility of satisfying the science objectives.
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