The periodic differences, due to relativistic effects, between a coordinate time scale applicable to the Solar-System barycenter, and time measured at the Earth's surface, were first estimated and are explained in: G M Clemence & V Szebehely, "Annual variation of an atomic clock", Astronomical Journal, Vol.72 (1967), p.1324-6.
(a)P K Seidelmann & T Fukushima (1992), "Why new time scales?", Astronomy & Astrophysics vol.265 (1992), pages 833-838: and (b) IAU resolution (1991) A.4(recommendation V), which recommended limiting the use of TDB (previously defined 1976-79) to cases "where discontinuity with previous work is deemed to be undesirable".