The Science of Fundamental Catalogs

TL;DR

This review explores the development, applications, and future prospects of astrometric catalogs in fundamental astronomy, astrophysics, and gravitational physics, highlighting their role in precise measurements and tests of physical theories.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of fundamental catalogs, their practical realizations, and their significance in advancing astrophysical and gravitational research.

Findings

Astrometric catalogs enable measurement of Oort constants and secular aberration.

They are crucial for testing general relativity and detecting cosmological gravitational waves.

Future prospects include improved accuracy and new applications in fundamental physics.

Abstract

This review paper discusses the science of astrometric catalogs, their current applications and future prospects for making progress in fundamental astronomy, astrophysics and gravitational physics. We discuss the concept of fundamental catalogs, their practical realizations, and future prospects. Particular attention is paid to the astrophysical implementations of the catalogs such as the measurement of the Oort constants, the secular aberration and parallax, and asteroseismology. We also consider the use of the fundamental catalogs in gravitational physics for testing general theory of relativity and detection of ultra-long gravitational waves of cosmological origin.