Detecting Jupiter's tug on radio waves. From: Science News | Date: November 9, 1991| Author: Peterson, Ivars | COPYRIGHT 1991 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

The gravitational deflection of starlight when it grazes the sun's limb has become a standard test of Einstein's general theory of relativity. With the help of sophisticated instrumentation stretched to its limits, researchers have now confirmed that an object as small as Jupiter also has a discernible effect on the paths of radio waves from a distant source as they speed past the planet.

These observations "constitute the first measurement of the deflection of electrom...