Abstract
The interior rotation of the Sun is determined from rotational splittings of global oscillations of the Sun. The angular velocity distribution yields the minimum quadrupole moment coefficient J2 = 1.6×10−6. A physical angular velocity distribution will produce a larger J2 of the order of 5.0×10−6. These results are compared with general relativity and the nonsymmetric theory of gravitation. For J2 = 5.0×10−6 we find that using the radar tracking data for the orbits of Mercury and the minor planet Icarus, general relativity disagrees with the data by ≈2¼ standard deviations. The nonsymmetric gravitational theory can fit all the Solar System data, including the orbits of Mercury and Icarus, if the new post-newtonian parameter l⊙ = 3.1×103 km.
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Campbell, L., McDow, J., Moffat, J. et al. The Sun's quadrupole moment and perihelion precession of Mercury. Nature 305, 508–510 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1038/305508a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/305508a0
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