The coordinate transformation between emission coordinates and inertial coordinates in Minkowski space-time is obtained for arbitrary configurations of the emitters. It appears that a positioning system always generates two different coordinate domains, namely, the front and the back emission coordinate domains. For both domains, the corresponding covariant expression of the transformation is explicitly given in terms of the emitter world-lines. This task requires the notion of orientation of an emitter configuration. The orientation is shown to be computable from the emission coordinates for the users of a 'central' region of the front emission coordinate domain. Other space-time regions associated with the emission coordinates are also outlined.

In the framework of relativistic positioning systems in Minkowski space-time, the determination of the inertial coordinates of a user involves the bifurcation problem (which is the indeterminate location of a pair of different events receiving the same emission coordinates). To solve it, in addition to the user emission coordinates and the emitter positions in inertial coordinates, it may happen that the user needs to know independently the orientation of its emission coordinates. Assuming that the user may observe the relative positions of the four emitters on its celestial sphere, an observational rule to determine this orientation is presented. The bifurcation problem is thus solved by applying this observational rule, and consequently, all of the parameters in the general expression of the coordinate transformation from emission coordinates to inertial ones may be computed from the data received by the user of the relativistic positioning system.

We present a new approach to the question of properly defining energy and momenta for non asymptotically Minkowskian spaces in general relativity, in the case where these energy and momenta are conserved. In order to do this, we first prove that there always exist some special Gauss coordinates for which the conserved linear and angular three-momenta vanish. This allows us to consider the case of creatable universes (the universes whose proper 4-momenta vanish) in a consistent way, which is the main interest of the paper. When applied to the Friedmann-Lema{\^{\i}}tre-Robertson-Walker case, perturbed or not, our formalism leads to previous results, according to most literature on the subject. Some future work that should be done is mentioned.Comment: Enlarged and modified version, where several comments have been added (20 pages), of the previous manuscript: "Creatable universes: a new, and more consistent and general approach". In particular, changes involve a new title and updated references. Accepted in General Relativity and Gravitatio

The case of asymptotic Minkowskian space-times is considered. A special class of asymptotic rectilinear coordinates at the spatial infinity, related to a specific system of free falling observers, is chosen. This choice is applied in particular to the Schwarzschild metric, obtaining a vanishing energy for this space-time. This result is compared with the result of some known theorems on the uniqueness of the energy of any asymptotic Minkowskian space, showing that there is no contradiction between both results, the differences becoming from the use of coordinates with different operational meanings. The suitability of Gauss coordinates when defining an intrinsic energy is considered and it is finally concluded that a Schwarzschild metric is a particular case of space-times with vanishing intrinsic 4-momenta.

The basic theory on relativistic positioning systems in a two-dimensional space-time has been presented in two previous papers [Phys. Rev. D 73, 084017 (2006); 74, 104003 (2006)], where the possibility of making relativistic gravimetry with these systems has been analyzed by considering specific examples. Here we study generic relativistic positioning systems in the Minkowski plane. We analyze the information that can be obtained from the data received by a user of the positioning system. We show that the accelerations of the emitters and of the user along their trajectories are determined by the sole knowledge of the emitter positioning data and of the acceleration of only one of the emitters. Moreover, as a consequence of the so called master delay equation, the knowledge of this acceleration is only required during an echo interval, i.e., the interval between the emission time of a signal by an emitter and its reception time after being reflected by the other emitter. We illustrate these results with the obtention of the dynamics of the emitters and of the user from specific sets of data received by the user. PACS numbers: 04.20.-q, 95.10.Jk