Forthcoming occultations of astrometric radio sources by planets

TL;DR

This paper provides an updated list of upcoming occultations of astrometric radio sources by planets, highlighting their significance for testing gravity, planetary physics, and the potential for radio astronomy observations.

Contribution

It offers a comprehensive, updated catalog of planetary occultation events for radio sources, including shadow path maps for optimal observation planning.

Findings

List of upcoming occultation events with predicted paths

Identification of regions with multiple VLBI stations for observations

Potential applications in gravity testing and planetary studies

Abstract

Astrometric observations of the radio source occultations by solar system bodies may be of large interest for testing gravity theories, dynamical astronomy, and planetary physics. In this paper, we present an updated list of the occultations of astrometric radio sources by planets expected in the nearest years. Such events, like the solar eclipses, generally speaking, can be only observed in a limited region. The map of the shadow path is provided for the events occurred in regions with several VLBI stations and hence the most interesting for radio astronomy experiments.