Precession-Jumping from 1875 to 1950

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In summary, the conversation discusses the process of precession in astronomical coordinates. The author of a book, written in 1967, needed to update star catalog data from 1875 to 1950. They achieved this by using a precession routine, preces, that was called twice to update two vectors. However, there was no code to update the precession to 1955, so they settled for 1950. The conversation also mentions a precession routine tool available online for coordinate conversion and precession.
  • #1
solarblast
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Precession--Jumping from 1875 to 1950

I'm looking at a book that was written in 1967. The only star catalog available for the author's purposes was from 1875. He needed to have the precession for 1955 data. In his program code, he makes a call to precco(0.75) to update the coefficients of the precession routine, preces. preces is called twice right after that to two vectors. Each vector is replaced by a new vector with precession applied.

I'm fairly sure that this is to jump 75 years (expressed as 0.75) and somehow move from 1875 to 1950. I do not see any code that gets the precession updated to 1955. Close enough at 1950, I guess?? Comments? Does this seem like a valid way to get to 1950?
 
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  • #2


Sounds like you could use a caculator.



Precession Routine

This routine will precess astronomical coordinates from one epoch to another.
http://fuse.pha.jhu.edu/support/tools/precess.html


Precess: Coordinate Conversion and Precession Tool
http://asc.harvard.edu/toolkit/precess.jsp
 
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What is precession-jumping from 1875 to 1950?

Precession-jumping refers to the sudden change in the position of the Earth's rotational axis, which occurred between the years 1875 and 1950. This change was caused by the gravitational pull of the Sun and Moon on the Earth's equatorial bulge.

Why is precession-jumping significant?

Precession-jumping has significant implications for the Earth's climate and the study of Earth's past climate. The change in the Earth's axis affects the distribution of sunlight and can lead to changes in global temperatures and weather patterns.

How was precession-jumping discovered?

Precession-jumping was first observed and documented by astronomer Simon Newcomb in the late 19th century. He noticed a sudden shift in the Earth's axis measurements, which were being recorded by astronomers at the time.

What caused the precession-jumping?

The precession-jumping was caused by a combination of factors, including the gravitational pull of the Sun and Moon, as well as the Earth's own internal processes. These factors caused a shift in the Earth's axis, leading to the precession-jumping phenomenon.

Is precession-jumping still occurring?

Yes, precession-jumping is a continuous process that is still occurring today. However, the rate of precession has slowed down since 1950 and is now only about half of what it was during the 1875-1950 period.

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