Gravity Probe B – The # 2 Cosmic Money Pit...

Gravity Probe B, a NASA mission to test two important predictions of Albert Einstein's Theory of General Relativity, launched April 20, 2004, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, aboard a Boeing Delta II expendable launch vehicle. The solar arrays deployed and initial data indicated all systems were operating smoothly. Gravity Probe B seeks to answer some of the most important questions about the structure of our universe.

The $700 million experiment has had a long and checkered history stretching back over 45 years. It was touted as one of the most unique experiments ever attempted in the history of science – yet it was beaten handily by other programs that cost pennies on the dollar by comparison.

The spacecraft was inserted into an almost perfect circular polar orbit around the Earth at an altitude of 400 miles. Gravity Probe B program manager Rex Geveden of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center said, "The Gravity Probe B space vehicle houses one of the most challenging science instruments ever devised and seeks to answer some of the most important questions about the structure of our universe."

The Gravity Probe B mission will use four ultra-precise gyroscopes to test Einstein's theory that space and time are distorted by the presence of massive objects. To accomplish this, the mission will measure two factors, how space and time are very slightly warped by the presence of the Earth, and how the Earth's rotation very slightly drags space-time around with it.

"This is a great moment and a great responsibility, the outcome of a unique collaboration of physicists and engineers to develop this near-perfect instrument to test Einstein's theory of gravity," said the experiment's aging principal investigator Dr. Francis Everitt of Stanford University in Stanford, California.

The in-orbit checkout and calibration lasted 60 days, followed by a 12-month science-data acquisition period and a two-month post-science period for calibrations to re-prove the original checkout.

During the mission, data from GP-B will be received at least twice daily. Either ground stations or NASA's data relay satellites can receive the information. Controllers communicate with the orbiting space vehicle from the Mission Operations Center at Stanford University.

Data will include space vehicle and instrument performance, as well as the very precise measurements of the gyroscopes' spin-axis pointing. By 2005 the GP-B mission will be complete. A one-year period is planned for scientific analysis of the data.

This space mission was conceived of by three nude swimmers at Stanford who were discussing gyros and gravitational forces as they looked at each other’s dripping wet bodies -- some 45 years ago. Stanford no longer allows its boys to run around stark raving nude. Stanford University was responsible for the design and integration of the science instruments, as well as for mission operations and data analysis. NASA's Kennedy Space Center was responsible for the preparations, countdown and launch of the Delta II -- which all went like clockwork – unlike the plagued history of this costly project.

The GP-B program will not release the scientific results obtained during the mission until one full year after the science phase has concluded – 2006 will be the earliest for any results. It is critically important to thoroughly analyze the data to ensure that is has been given a positive spin prior to releasing the results in case it is an utter failure.

Problems in Space…

“GRAVITY PROBE B MISSION UPDATE FOR JANUARY 21st, 2005 –

STRONG SOLAR FLARE AND RADIATION STORM

”We are in the process of recovering from the effects of 7 major solar flares that have erupted from the Sun's surface since January 15th, 2005. These flares have resulted in extremely high levels of proton radiation and errors in some of our electronics. In addition, these high levels of solar radiation saturated the Gravity Probe B telescope detectors, causing the telescope to lose track of the guide star (IM Pegasi). We have now re-locked the telescope onto the guide star. We have determined that one of the MBEs in the SRE electronics is in a non-critical location, but the second one is in a location that is used for SQUID calibration. We are in the process of creating a work-around for the second MBE location. Our science team reports that the loss of data from these events has been minimal...”

These solar flares are serious problems that are often disregarded in programs such as Gravity Probe B – as well as in the previous article about the upcoming three LISA spacecraft.

Winning The Science Race…

Geodetic Effect -- In 1915, Einstein published his General Theory of Relativity, which showed that mass is caused by the curvature of space-time. General Relativity also predicted that massive bodies such as planets and stars would actually distort the fabric of space and time. This gravitomagnetic phenomenon - known as the geodetic effect - has already been tested and proven by various experiments, but supposedly Gravity Probe B will be the most precise yet – for whatever that is worth.

And the winner is: On September 4, 2004, Ingrid Stairs, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, reported for the first time that the observed precession in a binary pulsar due to the geodetic effect was consistent with that predicted by general relativity. This pretty young professor beat out the aged Dr. Everitt by a good two years by the time he gets all of his notes together – and it only cost her time at a telescope plus her wages.

Frame Dragging -- Albert Einstein also predicted that such massive bodies as the Earth would also "drag" space-time with them as they rotate. This so-called frame-dragging or Lense-Thirring effect is extremely small -- and has also been measured before as noted below – making this search for a space-time vortex a total waste of time and $700 million.

And the winner is: On October 21, 2004, Italian research leader Ignazio Ciufolini of the Università di Lecce, stated that their team analyzed millions of laser signals that had been bounced off two satellites, called LAGEOS 1 and LAGEOS 2. The highly reflective spheres are not designed to do any work of their own. They look like 2-foot-diameter golf balls -- containing no batteries or electronics – just floating in space. The Italian researchers say their result is 99 percent of the predicted drag -- the first ever accurate measurement of frame-dragging. The Ciufolini project cost only their time since the two NASA satellites were sent up on an entirely different mission. Also, the big shinny golf balls will last 49 years longer than GP-B.

Escalating Price Tag…

In the past, many top NASA managers have repeatedly shown their complete dissatisfaction with this ballooning-in-price low-value spacecraft mission -- at a time when many other space programs of greater importance were begging for financial assistance or being scrubbed completely. Besides being four years late to launch, this single Earth-looping program cost more than the combined totals for the two Mars Rover programs: The second rover costs about $200 million; while the first rover cost about $300 million to build and launch.

Obviously somebody knows somebody in Congress...

How Pseudo-Science Gets Funded…

Not only has the program been a huge financial waste – over $300 million more than originally estimated – but it has been many life-times of work wasted for the numerous scientists whose minds could have been put to greater purpose. Of course Dr. Francis Everitt, the chief scientist on the mission feels otherwise. Dr. Everitt has dedicated over 45 years to Gravity Probe B and hopes to finally see his life’s work come to fruition when the results are probably tabulated in 2006 – even though he must by now have realized that he has lost the race.

Once again, as with Dr. Barish’s Caltech LIGO/LISA programs, using the sacred name of Dr. Albert Einstein goes a long way – a lesson certainly not lost on Dr. Everitt, who goes so far as to talk, dress, act and look Dr. Einstein. These lead scientists have evolved into a new breed of sci-politicians. With the slush funds they receive from the NSF (National Science Foundation) they hire lobbyists to represent their program – but more importantly they hire lobbyists to actually train them on how to personally put their programs across to Congress. They become fast studies in the machinations of global media and how to effectively use it to further their personal causes. Politicians love the touchy-feely and sci-politicians such as Stanford’s Dr. Everitt are happy to oblige.

This aging Gravity Probe B program has miraculously survived numerous setbacks, huge cost overruns, technical snags and years of constant delays – not to mention the ongoing congressional scrutiny that tried to have it killed long ago. One anonymous NASA engineer joked that the Stanford boys were either great politicians or were blackmailing Congressmen for their past nefarious deeds – The answer is probably a mixture of both.

During an in-depth interview by the New Scientist (4/2/05), Dr. Everitt stated that the Gravity Probe B program was cancelled a total of ten times over the years. NASA would secretly call him, often in the middle of the night, to tell him that the program was being cancelled and that he better knock on the back doors of Congress to revive the program. That’s what he would immediately do and it always worked. Dr. Everitt says that now he just automatically stalks the Halls of Congress around three times a year just to keep his insider contacts. Touchy-feely.