# Surveying the solar system by measuring angles and times: from the solar density to the gravitational constant

Source: [Surveying the solar system by measuring angles and times: from the solar density to the gravitational constant](<https://www.sota2.com/research/paper/68fa26bf2c2a3760193bd198>)

Collection index: [llms.txt](<https://www.sota2.com/research/llms.txt>)

Data updated: 2025-10-24T11:36:21.112Z

Authors: K. Capelle

Published: 2004-12-21T11:14:42.000Z

## Abstract

A surprisingly large amount of information on our solar system can be gained from simple measurements of the apparent angular diameters of the sun and the moon. This information includes the average density of the sun, the distance between earth and moon, the radius of the moon, and the gravitational constant. In this note it is described how these and other quantities can be obtained by simple earthbound measurements of angles and times only, without using any explicit information on distances between celestial bodies. The pedagogical and historical aspects of these results are also discussed briefly.

## Recorded benchmark results

A research result applies to its stated dataset, split, metric and evaluation configuration. Compare like-for-like settings, preserve the metric's unit and direction, and distinguish paper-reported results from independent reproduction. The best result recorded here is not a claim of exhaustive, current global coverage.

## Original sources and implementation

[Original paper](<https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0412134>)

[PDF](<https://arxiv.org/pdf/physics/0412134.pdf>)