Attempts to explain the "gravitational anomaly" identified in the motion of the most distant man-made celestial bodies, lead to the need for a fundamental review of the principles of celestial mechanics. A group of scientists from the laboratory Jet Propulsion (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., and Los Alamos National Laboratory, led by John D. Anderson (John D. Anderson) was able to show that the anomalies in the motion of the spacecraft can have serious implications for classical mechanics. Beginning in 1970 in selecting routes for spacecraft widely used so-called "swing maneuvers" in the gravitational field of massive planets allows us to give apparatus further impetus and thereby substantially reduce the time of flight and increase the weight of the machine.
For the first time such a class of maneuvers was used in the so-called "Great Tour" when the research probes Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 and Voyager 1 and Voyager-2 "received an additional impetus to the passage near the most massive planets in the solar system – Jupiter and Saturn. This allowed them to develop a speed sufficient to ensure to leave the solar system. In recent years, gravitational maneuvers were used, in particular, the probe "Cassini". Using a gravity assist in the massive planets proved successful and allowed for the first time in the history of humanity not only to conduct a survey of the giant planets, but also to send vehicles beyond the solar system in general. However, the motion of the probe soon began to be observed puzzling anomaly.
It turned out that probes lose speed noticeably faster than it should have from the equations of celestial mechanics, whose validity is recognized and the classical and relativistic physics. Anomalous behavior can be interpreted as acceleration toward the Sun acting on the probe. For the first time the effect of this unexplained effect was found in the movement are most distant from Earth probes Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11. Calculations show that this acceleration amounts to 8.74 + / -1.33 x10-8 cm/s2. Its the same can also be interpreted as an acceleration of the time. Repeated attempts to explain the strange effect of design features themselves devices – such as the expiration of gases – have been unsuccessful. It has been suggested that the observed anomalies are associated with systematic error, but to prove it, no one has. Furthermore, recent studies show that this effect to a greater or lesser extent characteristic not only of "Pioneers" and "Voyager", but also to other spacecraft, performing maneuvers in the gravitational field of planets. Perhaps, the observed discrepancies with the theory due to the gravitational influence substance which has not yet been able to find other ways and conventionally designated as the "dark matter". You may need a radical revision of the postulates of celestial mechanics. The group of Dr. Anderson was able to show that gravity anomaly "Pioneers" is associated with swing-maneuver the perfect machines. Moreover – that at least three staff who have committed gravitational maneuver in the Earth's field, little changed their energy in a geocentric system passing near the Earth, which, according to the basics of mechanics, can not be in principle. This applies to the probes Galileo-I, near, Rosetta, and probably also probes Cassini and Messenger. According to the authors, the new results suggest the possible presence of weak and has not yet been described effects in energy transfer during the gravitational interaction of two bodies. And if this is true, "gravity anomaly Pioneers "can suddenly jeopardize seemingly unshakeable foundations of classical mechanics.