Parallel sessions SG1 – SG2, “GR around the Earth and the Sun”
Chair: Roberto Peron – Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali (IAPS-INAF), Roma, Italy
Neil Ashby – Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA; NIST Affiliate
The session deals with the recent advances in testing general relativity and alternative theories of gravitation around Earth and in the Solar System. This includes testing frame dragging and PPN gravitation with laser ranged satellites as well as with dedicated missions around Earth. Also important are the connections with geodesy and reference frames issues, now well known with the use of GPS. Testing general relativity in the framework of Solar System exploration is another important part, including the ongoing Cassini and the forthcoming BepiColombo. Modeling the dynamical environment of a probe in these different contexts is an important issue, and specific contributions in this direction are welcome. A special attention will be devoted moreover to tests of the Equivalence Principle. The verification of this cornerstone for many gravitational theories – in its various formulations – continues to be at the center of scientific interest, also for the potential impact that violations could have in our overall picture of the Universe.