Constraints on Non-Standard Gravitomagnetism by the Anomalous Perihelion Precession of the Planets

Abstract

In 2008, a team of astronomers reported an anomalous retrograde precession of the perihelion of Saturn amounting to \(\Delta \dot{\omega}_{\mathrm{SATURN}}=-0.006(2)\) arcsec per century (arcsec cy\(^{-1}\)). This unexplained precession was obtained after taking into account all classical and relativistic effects in the context of the highly refined EPM2008 ephemerides. More recent analyzes have not confirmed this effect, but they have found similar discrepancies in other planets. Our objective in this paper is to discuss a non-standard model involving transversal gravitomagnetism generated by the Sun as a possible source of these potential anomalies, to be confirmed by further data analyses. In order to compute the Lense–Thirring perturbations induced by the suggested interaction, we should consider the orientation of the Sun's rotational axis in Carrington elements and the inclination of the planetary orbits with respect to the ecliptic plane. We find that an extra component of the gravitomagnetic field not predicted by General Relativity could explain the reported anomalies without conflicting with the Gravity Probe B experiment and the orbits of the geodynamics satellites.

Keywords

• experimental tests of gravitational theories
• modified theories of gravity
• perihelion precession