Open AccessRecent astronomical tests of general relativity
Author(s) -
John Treschman Keith
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
international journal of the physical sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1992-1950
DOI - 10.5897/ijps2014.4236
Subject(s) - general relativity , physics , tests of general relativity , gravitational redshift , gravity probe a , equivalence principle (geometric) , gravitational time dilation , two body problem in general relativity , theory of relativity , speed of gravity , gravitational field , gravitation , gravitational lens , classical mechanics , time dilation , astrophysics , theoretical physics , numerical relativity , redshift , introduction to the mathematics of general relativity , galaxy
The history of experimentation relevant to general relativity covers the time post-1928. Classes of investigation are the weak equivalence principle (equivalence of inertial and gravitational mass and gravitational redshift), orbital precession of a body in gravitational fields (the relativistic perihelion advance of the planets, the relativistic periastron advance of binary pulsars, geodetic precession and Lense-Thirring effect), light propagation in gravitational fields (gravitational optical light deflection, gravitational radio deflection due to the Sun, gravitational lensing, time dilation and atomic clocks) and strong gravity implications (Nordtved effect and potential gravitational waves). The results of experiments are analysed to conclude to what extent they support general relativity. A number of questions are then answered: (a) how much evidence exists to support general relativity, (b) is it a reasonable way of thinking and (c) what is the niche it may occupy?
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