A reflector left on the Moon as part of the Apollo 14 mission consists of many closely spaced reflecting prisms arranged in a grid (Image: NASA)
Posted on 07/01/2007 9:04:42 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
NASA is funding the development of lasers that could be placed on the Moon to check for subtle deviations from the standard theory of gravity. Lasers have been used to make very precise measurements of the Earth-Moon distance since the Apollo era, when astronauts left reflectors at three sites on the lunar surface. A fourth reflecting device is attached to a robotic lunar lander launched by the Soviet Union. To pin down the Moon's distance, scientists bounce light from Earth-based lasers off of these reflectors and measure how long it takes to return. Because the Moon's motion is governed by gravity, such studies can be used to test whether Einstein's general theory of relativity gives an accurate description of this motion. Some speculative theories of cosmology, such as one inspired by string theory that involves exotic particles called dilatons, predict deviations from general relativity. Other theories predict that the gravitational constant (G), which measures the basic strength of gravity, is not constant at all, but varies with time. These deviations are predicted to be very subtle, so more precise measurements are needed to either detect them or rule them out... That is why Slava Turyshev of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, US, and colleagues want to put a more sophisticated device on the Moon... Called a laser transponder, the device would detect an incoming laser pulse from Earth and then fire its own laser back in response. The resulting signal would be much stronger and could therefore be detected by dozens of different observatories around the world. This in turn would allow for more accurate measurements of the Moon's distance.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.newscientist.com ...
A reflector left on the Moon as part of the Apollo 14 mission consists of many closely spaced reflecting prisms arranged in a grid (Image: NASA)
Moon measurements might explain away dark energy
The New Scientist | 2/19/05 | Will Knight
Posted on 02/20/2005 5:18:12 PM EST by LibWhacker
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1347416/posts
Testing the gravitational inverse-square law
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1391714/posts
Exotic cause of ‘Pioneer anomaly’ in doubt
NewScientist.com | 22 June 2007 | David Shiga
Posted on 06/26/2007 8:59:25 AM EDT by BGHater
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1856413/posts
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Thanks potlatch
That is one TP background 500x375 animated stars (3 frames) .gif over a 1024x768 still starrynight.gif on a table BG I set at about 990x745
That is the Body BG & Table BG FX you see on most PC browsers that I cannot see on my WebTV if I put other smaller .gifs over the 1st &/or 2nd layer(s)
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Neat laser-lightning FX there
I’ll have to look at those closely
Your page is good! That blue laser-lightening thing does not show up that well on black.
Firing lasers at the moon might cook the cheese.
Or scare the rabbit.
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