Lunar laser-ranging detection of light-speed anisotropy and gravitational waves

Abstract

The Apache Point Lunar Laser-ranging Operation (APOLLO), in New Mexico, can detect photon bounces from retro-reflectors on the moon surface to 0.1ns timing resolution. This facility enables not only the detection of light speed anisotropy, which defines a local preferred frame of reference — only in that frame is the speed of light isotropic — but also fluctuations/turbulence (gravitational waves) in the flow of the dynamical 3-space relative to local systems/observers. So the APOLLO facility can act as an effective “gravitational wave” detector. A recently published small data set from November 5, 2007 is analysed to characterise both the average anisotropy velocity and the wave/turbulence effects. The results are consistent with some 13 previous detections, with the last and most accurate being from the spacecraft earth-flyby Doppler-shift NASA data.