A Love number is a parameter used in geophysics and planetary science to describe the response of a celestial body's shape to gravitational forces, particularly in the context of tides. The concept is named after A.E.H. Love, who developed the mathematical theory of elasticity that describes how solid objects deform under external forces.
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A Love number measures a body's tidal response to an applied potential. The degree-two potential response is sensitive to radial density structure and central concentration, and can complement mass and radius constraints on an exoplanet interior. Inferring it from orbital precession requires separating other contributions and assumptions about rotation and the tidal response.