NASA to test Einstein's time warp theory

theage.com.au ^ | April 5, 2004 | Richard Macey

[Destro]

NASA puts new spin on old Einstein

By Richard Macey

April 5, 2004

Almost 90 years after Albert Einstein published his theory that space and time are "curved", it is about to be put to a $US850 million ($A1.1 billion) test.

Next Sunday week, if all goes well, a NASA satellite fitted with four tiny gyroscopes will be fired from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, into a 640-kilometre- high orbit.

The size of ping-pong balls, the gyroscopes will be set rotating, aligned to a star tracked by the satellite's on-board telescope.

If Einstein's theory of relativity is right, the angle at which they spin should gradually drift over the next two years as the satellite orbits.

According to the theory, gravity does not only distort space up and down, left and right, forward and backward but can also make time run slower, so that the tick of a second on a clock may not always take exactly one second.

But Einstein's theory has only been partially verified.

"Until a theory is thoroughly tested," said Stanford University scientists, who helped develop the mission, "we cannot accept it as fact."

NASA said the satellite "will measure how space and time are warped by the presence of the Earth, and, more profoundly, how the Earth's rotation drags space-time around with it".

"These effects, though small for the Earth, have far-reaching implications for the nature of matter and the structure of the universe," the agency said.

First proposed in the 1950s, the satellite, Gravity Probe B, has been funded by NASA since 1964, its design extensively changed to ensure success.

It is arguably "among the most thoroughly researched programs" that NASA has undertaken.

[Benrand]

this MUST not fall into Harkonnen hands!

[Fedora]

For people interested in this subject, Paul Nahin has written a couple books that are a readable introduction to the current state of time travel theory:

Time Travel (Science Fiction Writing Series)

Time Machines: Time Travel in Physics, Metaphysics, and Science Fiction (includes technical notes in appendices)

[Fedora]

It's just a jump to the left. . .

[skinkinthegrass]

Tanks..destro...more reading. :)

[man of Yosemite]

When Jesus was raised from the dead, he demonstrated abilities that his prior body didn't have, moving in and out of rooms without using doors, appearing and disappearing at will. He has promised that we would also be raised to have these same glorified bodies, Jesus being the firstborn among many brethren.

If we are to possess bodies that are uniquely Spirit, united to God in life, could we not move in the realm of Spiritual life freely? If the Spirit of God moves in all places of God's creation, perhaps we will be able to move anywhere in the Spirit, arriving at any created place at any created time. Our ideas of time travel and exploration of space may be a mere premonition to what is planned by God after he has raised his children from the dead. We will not rise to this level of technology as mortal men, but may attain it effortlessly, apart from technology, as we step into the resurrection of the dead.

[Elsie]

"Until a theory is thoroughly tested," said Stanford University scientists, who helped develop the mission, "we cannot accept it as fact."

Ths dude is OBVIOUSLY not an "Evolutionist"!!!

[PatrickHenry]

Relativity ping.

[VadeRetro]

As I understand Einstein's equivalence principle, you can't tell "real" gravity from truly uniform acceleration in the absence of external clues. There should be absolutely no way. Thus, if time dilation occurs in a gravity well, it should occur in a centrifuge. At least, Einstein would say so.

[RadioAstronomer]

I have a friend who is working on this mission. I hope it goes well.

[Trueblackman]

This is Bush's fault again.

[edwin hubble]

I was looking into the details of this mission. The Gravity Probe B uses some sophisticated equipment with four superconducting (niobium @ 2.5K) gyroscopes acting as a drag-free proof mass. The 'rotor' of each is about the size of a plum. It will use a pure inertial orbit that will be checked for expected precession.


From NASA site: "For Einstein`s general relativity, the precessions are calculated to be 6.6 arc sec/year for the geodetic precession and 0.042 arc sec/year for the frame-dragging precession. The goal of the GP-B experiment is to measure these precessions to better than 0.01% and 1%, respectively."

[Destro]

No way is it Bush's fault. I don't see him thinking too deeply on matters such as these.

[RightWhale]

I'll pay you $2000. FReepmail me

No, I have to decline the job since I am booked up for the foreseeable future. However, there is a thread about this from last week or so. Somebody in Georgia, if I recall [and I probably don't], but he is running only one centrifuge and can't measure the gravity effect.

[RightWhale]

The difference between gravity as a force and acceleration caused by an external force must be something simple once we see it. Einstein sure left us a puzzle.

[anobjectivist]

Modern physics is a class I am taking in the fall, and I will know much more about this then, but centripedal acceleration != gravity acceleration when you consider objects that aren't just point particles. For example, I doubt that tidal forces could be re-created in a centrifuge, but if you come across someone who has done so, please let me know, because I would be interested in this information.

As for the experiment, I understand that it has to do with massive objects ( such as the earth ) dragging spacetime while the massive object rotates. I don't see how you could change the mass of a centrifuge to a particle observing it and then rotate it so that it drags space-time by any amount that could be measured on any apparatus that people can make.

What they are testing here is not the same.

[TheLion]

Einstein was working on the "Unified Field Theory" which would have made all this clear....even if unproven. I think he coined the term.

Anything in a "field" of force would have the same equations to conform to, including, I suppose, Centrifigual force.

[anobjectivist]

Show me where it was written that centrifugal force is a field.

I've never heard that.

[YoSoy2]

"I don't see him thinking too deeply on matters such as these."

Thinking of thinking, do you think he thinks what I'm thinking? What do you think? BTW, I don't think he thinks what I'm thinking because he simply doesn't like to think. :)

[TheLion]

Anything reacting to a force is in a "field".

[RandallFlagg]

Here's my thoughts:

Since mass = gravity, it would be suitable to have something of increased mass to warp space in front of the ship. Anything of high mass will create a gravitational field (Planets, stars, etc.) and the more massive, the more intense the gravity.

Neutron stars have high mass, Black Holes as well. I remember Sagan saying, "A chunk of neutron star matter weighs about a mountain per teaspoonful."

Could it work if a ship made something similar to this matter by way of fusion to create the warp field, then un-make it when they arrive at their destination (Or when they have reached their desired velocity) by way of fission? Something like this: A ship wishes to achieve warp speeds. they expell the elements seperate that, when joined, make a supermassive material. The elements are joined with a nuke (or something) and they have a stable gravity well in front of their ship. Using some unknown force, they keep it ahead of them at all times and use another nuke (or something) to destroy it upon arrival.

Too much thought. Going to bed now!