Analytic Gravitational-Force Calculations for Models of the Kuiper Belt, with Application to the Pioneer Anomaly

Abstract

We use analytic techniques to study the gravitational force that would be produced by different Kuiper-Belt mass distributions. In particular, we study the 3-dimensional rings (and wedge) whose densities vary as the inverse of the distance, as a constant, as the inverse-squared of the distance, as well as that which varies according to the Boss-Peale model. These analytic calculations yield physical insight into the physics of the problem. They also verify that physically viable models of this type can produce neither the magnitude nor the constancy of the Pioneer anomaly.

11 pages, 8 figures, final corrections for publication

References in corpus (1)

• Directly Measured Limit on the Interplanetary Matter Density from Pioneer 10 and 11

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