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The Anomalous Pioneer Blueshift

Turyshev et al» found “The Pioneer 11 data also indicated that the anomaly ... appears to be amplified (or turned on) at a distance of ~10 A.U. from the Sun. This is approximately when the craft flew by Saturn and entered an hyperbolic, escape trajectory”. Although what is measured is blueshift, JPL expressed their result in the form of an equivalent classical acceleration, a_P = 8.74 ± 1.33 × 10⁻⁸ cm s⁻². Despite a thorough analysis of conceivable possibilities by the engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL»), no explanation in classical physics has been found for the anomalous blueshift. The blueshift can also be expressed as a drift in frequency, 2.92 ± 0.44 × 10⁻¹⁸ s ⁄ s². JPL have commented that this value is close to Hubble’s constant, H₀ ≈ 71 km s^-1 Mpc^-1 = 2.3 × 10^-18 s⁻¹, suggesting a possible cosmological origin for the shift. In standard general relativity, no cosmological shift is predicted in signals from Pioneer, but the teleconnection does predict such a shift. If this explanation is correct, then there is no corresponding classical acceleration and, if its position could be measured by ranging, Pioneer would be found on the expected Newtonian path.

In relational quantum gravity, quantum theory gives a calculation of probabilities between an initial state and final state, not a description of physical reality between initial and final measured states. For light from a distant astronomical object, the initial state is determined with respect to reference matter on the distant object, while the final state is determined with respect to reference matter on Earth. The calculation of redshift depends on the relationship between these reference frames, which in turn depends on physical processes which may be used to determine that relationship. When a distant clock can be calibrated to one on the Earth, redshifts calculated using the teleconnection are identical to those found in standard general relativy. After radar lock was lost with Pioneer, it was no longer possible to calibrate processes on Pioneer to processes on Earth. In this case the teleconnection predicts a different result. The anomalous shift is seen, not as a difference in physical processes taking place on Pioneer, nor as indicating in a change in the motion of Pioneer, but as a change in the geometrical relationship between Pioneer and the Earth due to the absence of a physical process to calibrate reference frames after radar lock was lost. It is notable that a preliminary analysis of planetary flybys also shows an anomaly during a period when radar lock is lost (Anderson et al»).

It is not clear why radar lock was lost. This is usually put down to equipment failure due to unknown cause, possibly hostile conditions during the Jupiter flyby. A quantum theoretic explanation would be more satisfying if it were possible to present some reason of principle why radar should be lost at a given point, rather than simply equipment failure. No such reason of principle has been found. It is clear that the teleconnection requires two distinct laws for redshift, depending on whether the reference frames used to describe the initial and final states are necessarily distinct, or whether they can be calibrated to each other and treated as a single reference frame. It is not clear precisely how to state the conditions which differentiate these two situations. A similar dichotomy will be seen in the Illusory Orbital Velocity found in teleconnection analysis of galaxy rotation curves. An illusory velocity is found for stars in bound orbits in the Milky Way, but not for planets in the solar system. This dichotemy is reflected in MOND. At the present time it can only be treated phenomenologically. An explanation might be expected to involve the distance of a radiation source from the Sun as well as the peculiar motions of both the Sun and the radiation source relative to τ−ρ coordinates.

To calculate the predicted drift, let the classical momentum of Pioneer at the time of loss of radar lock, t₀, be represented by a vector p. Pioneer’s classical momentum is constant in τ−ρ coordinates with non-physical metric (neglecting radiation pressure and the gravity of the Sun). So, noting that t₀ is now the earlier time, as determined from signals detected on Earth classical energy is
Classical energy is proportional to the rate of clocks on Pioneer, so signals from Pioneer show a frequency drift, H₀, toward the blue.

To my knowledge, an essentially similar calculation has been carried out independently by two other researchers, Kris Krogh» and L.M. Tomilchik»

Anomalous Pioneer Blueshift ↑ Galaxy Rotation Curves, CDM and MOND →