Test of gravitomagnetism with satellites around the Earth

TL;DR

This paper proposes a space-based experiment using geostationary satellites to measure Earth's gravitomagnetic effects by detecting signal delays caused by Earth's rotation.

Contribution

It introduces a novel satellite-based method to detect Earth's gravitomagnetism through electromagnetic signal delay measurements in geostationary orbits.

Findings

Theoretical calculation of signal delays due to gravitomagnetism.

Potential for detecting Earth's gravitomagnetic field with precise timing.

Feasibility of experimental setup for future measurements.

Abstract

We focus on the possibility of measuring the gravitomagnetic effects due to the rotation of the Earth, by means of a space-based experiment that exploits satellites in geostationary orbits. Due to the rotation of the Earth, there is an asymmetry in the propagation of electromagnetic signals in opposite directions along a closed path around the Earth. We work out the delays between the two counter-propagating beams for a simple configuration, and suggest that accurate time measurements could allow, in principle, to detect the gravitomagnetic effect of the Earth