Related papers: Measuring the Earth-Sun distance during a lunar ec…
Aims. 'Earthshine' is the dim light seen on the otherwise dark side of the Moon, particularly when it is close to new. 'Earthlight', or reflected sunlight from the Earth, is the source of Earthshine. Using B and V band CCD images of both…
Astrometric issues for solar system studies are discussed. An overview gives references and cover all aspects of the solar system where astrometry is important: orbits of planets, moons, asteroids and NEOs, masses of asteroids, occultations…
Of all planet-finding techniques, microlensing is potentially the most sensitive to Earth-mass planets. However, microlensing lightcurves generically yield only the planet-star mass ratio: the mass itself is uncertain to a factor of a few.…
A discussion of the solar diameter and its variations must be linked to the limb darkening function (LDF). We introduce a new method to perform high resolution astrometry of the solar diameter from the ground, through the observations of…
The observation of a central eclipse from the umbral band and, even better, from its edge allows to measure the solar diameter with an accuracy up to a part over 100000. The data of the annular eclipse of 22 september 2006 observed from…
Given a solar luminosity L_Ar = 0.75 L_0 at the beginning of the Archean 3.8 Gyr ago, where L_0 is the present-day one, if the heliocentric distance r of the Earth was r_Ar = 0.956 r_0, the solar irradiance would have been as large as I_Ar…
The Earth is subjected to a uniform flux of very-high-energy (VHE, E > 100 GeV) cosmic rays unless they are obscured by an object, such as the Moon, in which case a deficit or shadow is created. Since cosmic rays are charged this deficit is…
We significantly constrain the sky position, distance, and mass of a possible additional, distant planet in the solar system by examining its influence on the distance between Earth and the Cassini Spacecraft. Our preferred region is…
Longitude determination at sea gained increasing commercial importance in the late Middle Ages, spawned by a commensurate increase in long-distance merchant shipping activity. Prior to the successful development of an accurate marine…
We have obtained empirical laws for the variation of the Earth parameters with geologic time that are in agreement with coral fossil data obtained by Wells and Runcorn. Our model predicts that the day is lengthening at a rate of 2…
In this work, we measure the volumetric mean radius of the Earth, reproducing the historical experiment of Eratosthenes, carried out around 240 BC, in the ancient cities of Siena and Alexandria. Here, we perform measurements in the cities…
A model based on celestial geometry and atmospheric physics predicts the dimming and the color of lunar eclipses. Corresponding visual magnitudes and color indices for eclipses from year 2000 through 2050 are listed. The enlargement of the…
In1879 George Howard Darwin theoretically analyzed the outward spiraling orbit of Moon and the subsequent lengthening of the Mean Solar Day. The author redid the same analysis based on the fact that Moon was receding at the rate of 3.8 cm…
The role of the moon in triggering earthquakes has been studied since the early 1900s. Theory states that as land tides swept by the moon cross fault lines, stress in the Earth's plates intensifies, increasing the likelihood of small…
Asteroseismology provides fundamental properties (mass, radius and effective temperature) of solar-like oscillating stars using so-called scaling relations. These properties allow the computation of the asteroseismic distance of stars. We…
In the Tuscan Archipelago (Italy) it's possible to make an approximate measurement of the Earth's radius from the Elba Island using the Pianosa Island as a ship that appears and disappears on the horizon depending on the observer's height…
The interaction of cosmic rays with celestial bodies such as the Moon or the Sun produces a shadow in the arrival direction distribution of the cosmic rays reaching the Earth. Such deficits from an isotropic flux have been observed by…
The non-spherical shape of the Sun has been invoked to explain the anomalous precession of Mercury. A brief history of some methods for measuring solar diameter is presented. Archimedes was the first to give upper and lower values for solar…
Distant starlight passing through the Earth's atmosphere is refracted by an angle of just over one degree near the surface. This focuses light onto a focal line starting at an inner (and chromatic) boundary out to infinity - offering an…
Earth-like extra-solar planets may be detected with 1-2m class telescopes using the gravitational microlensing technique. The essential requirement is the ability to be able to carry out continuous observations of the galactic bulge. A…