thebigfert.blogg.se - Gravity curved space geometry einstein general relativity

Other huge areas of research in GR are cosmology and astrophysics, which study topics like black holes, dark matter, dark energy, the Big Bang and even the structure of planets and stars.Īrguably, regardless of how practical you view general relativity as, to me it is just an incredibly beautiful theory that relates physics to geometry.

General relativity is at the heart of most modern research in theoretical physics: you’ve probably at some point heard about the whole “quantum gravity” thing, which arguably involves a lot of active research in general relativity.

General relativity describes new phenomena, which the old Newtonian law of gravity could not predict: examples of this are black holes (in principle, Newtonian gravity can predict they exist, but not describe them to the extent of GR) and gravitational waves (this is a totally unique phenomenon to GR).

Newtonian gravity is incomplete and sometimes gives incorrect predictions, which general relativity describes correctly: even in our solar system, Newton’s laws are incapable of predicting the orbits of planets precisely (generally, planetary orbits are actually not ellipses).

Here is a list of a few of the most important applications of general relativity: Sure, you’ve clicked on this article, so you’re probably interested to learn more, but still what makes general relativity an important theory?

The Principle of Least Action in General Relativity Why Is General Relativity Important?īefore we get started on what general relativity actually is, there is an important aspect to be discussed: why should you even care about this topic?.

What Are The Einstein Field Equations Used For?.

The Einstein Field Equations: What Actually Causes Spacetime Curvature?.

Geodesics & How Objects Move in Curved Spacetime.

The Riemann & Ricci Tensors: What Do They Represent Geometrically and Physically?.

Curvature Tensors & How They Relate To Gravity in General Relativity.

What Is The Physical Meaning of The Christoffel Symbols?.

Christoffel Symbols & Their Geometric Meaning.

Metric Tensor: The “Fundamental Tensor” of General Relativity.

What Are Tensors and Why Are They Used In General Relativity?.

The Mathematics of General Relativity Explained Intuitively.The Underlying Postulates of General Relativity.General Relativity In a Nutshell: A Quick Overview.These will not be necessary to understand the basics, however.Īlso, while this article doesn’t necessarily require previous understanding of much of anything, it will help greatly to have some knowledge of special relativity.įor that, I’d recommend reading my introductory article on special relativity.

In a way, this article will work as an in-depth overview of general relativity and more importantly, it will give you the big picture and the important tools needed to learn more of whatever topic you find interesting.Įach subtopic will contain practical examples and in-depth additional sections for those who are interested in exploring the details and applications as well as how the math works. How general relativity is used to model gravity we will look at the physical meaning behind all the complicated math, how they relate to gravity and also how the concepts of general relativity relate to the more usual Newtonian theory of gravity.The underlying reasoning behind what general relativity is all about why we use tensors, how and why gravity has something to do with spacetime curvature as well as what the actual equations of general relativity really tell us in an intuitive sense.This is what we will explore in this article.įrom reading this article, you will learn: Now, while the mathematical structure of general relativity is, without a doubt, a complicated mess to most beginners, understanding the theory itself and the physics behind it is actually quite simple.

General relativity explains gravity as a property of spacetime rather than a force, namely, as the curvature of spacetime, which is caused by matter and energy. To me, the theory of general relativity is one of the most beautiful theories of nature ever invented, but it is often seen as one of those obscure topics that are not easily accessible to most people.Īs a brief introduction, general relativity is the most accurate theory of gravity so far, introduced by Albert Einstein in the early 1900s.