https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/i2014-14047-9
Regular Article
Illustrating the covariances of general relativity by perihelion precession
School of Physical Science and Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, 610031, Chengdu, China
* e-mail: wl@wjtu.edu.cn
Received:
25
November
2013
Accepted:
27
February
2014
Published online:
26
March
2014
We calculate the perihelion precession of a test particle in the Edditington-Robertson parameterized metric via the rate of change of the Runge-Lenz vector. It is shown that the calculation results are the same as in the standard, isotropic and harmonic coordinates. These results provide concrete illustrations of the covariances of general relativity. In addition, we find some typos in the derivation of the perihelion precession via the Runge-Lenz vector in Weinberg's classic general relativity textbook, and this finding might also be useful for the beginners who are reading the textbook.
© Società Italiana di Fisica and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2014
