Some terms of nutation derived from the BIH data

Summary. The z -term of latitude and the w -term of UT, as computed by the BIH, are suitable for investigating imperfections in the representation of the real nutation in space. They have been previously used for deriving only the amplitude of the principal term of nutation (Feissel & Guinot). In this study they are used more generally for deriving the amplitudes of two terms of nutation and searching for a possible nutation in space due to the nearly-diurnal wobble.
Two kinds of data are used for this purpose: the values of z and w from 1962.0 to 1980.0 at 0.05 yr intervals and the values of z from 1967.0 to 1980.0 at 5 day intervals. The first ones have been used previously by Feissel & Guinot (using the values up to 1974.0 and 1976.95 respectively). The second ones have not previously been used for such studies.
The derived amplitudes of the principal and the fortnightly terms of nutation are in good agreement with other values deduced from observations, and with the theoretical ones corresponding to the best models of a non-rigid earth. The values obtained are not yet sufficiently precise to distinguish between these models, but could become so in the near future.
The least-squares fits, performed among the z and w data in order to look for any error in the representation of nutation, show the existence of a retrograde term, of a 434 day period for z and 444 day for w and an amplitude of the order of 0.01 arcsec. It may be due to the nearly-diurnal wobble.