Gravity Probe B
Abstract/Contents
- About the project
- Gravity Probe B (GP-B) is a NASA physics mission to experimentally investigate Einstein’s 1916 general theory of relativity—his theory of gravity. GP-B uses four spherical gyroscopes and a telescope, housed in a satelliteorbiting 642 km (400 mi) above the Earth, to measure, with unprecedented accuracy, two extraordinary effects predicted by the general theory of relativity: 1) the geodetic effect—the amount by which the Earth warps the localspacetime in which it resides; and 2) the frame-dragging effect—the amount by which the rotating Earth drags its local spacetime around with it. GP-B tests these two effects by precisely measuring the precession (displacement)angles of the spin axes of the four gyros over the course of a year and comparing these experimental results with predictions from Einstein’s theory.
Description
Type of resource | still image |
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Form | photographs |
Extent | 1 photograph |
Place | Stanford (Calif.) |
Date created | 1990 |
Language | English |
Digital origin | reformatted digital |
Creators/Contributors
Sponsor | National Research Council (U.S.). Task Group on Gravity Probe B | |
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Researcher | Stanford University. Department of Physics | |
Researcher | Everitt, Francis |
Subjects
Subject | Einstein, Albert, 1879-1955 |
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Subject | Physics > Experiments |
Subject | General relativity (Physics) |
Genre | Photographs |
Bibliographic information
Finding Aid | |
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Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/mf864sz3509 |
Location | SC1274 |
Repository | Stanford University. Libraries. Department of Special Collections and University Archives |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- The materials are open for research use and may be used freely for non-commercial purposes with an attribution. For commercial permission requests, please contact the Stanford University Archives (universityarchives@stanford.edu).
- Copyright
- Copyright © The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
Collection
Gravity Probe B records, 1983-2008
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