XIII. On the precession of a viscous spheroid, and on the remote history of the Earth

Abstract

The following paper contains the investigation of the mass-motion of viscous and imperfectly elastic spheroids, as modified by a relative motion of their parts, produced in them by the attraction of external disturbing bodies; it must be regarded as the continuation of my previous paper, where the theory of the bodily tides of such spheroids was given. The problem is one of theoretical dynamics, but the subject is so large and complex, th at I thought it best, in the first instance, to guide the direction of the speculation by considerations of applicability to the case of the earth, as disturbed by the sun and moon.