An angularly accelerated superconductive ring induces non-Newtonian gravitational fields in its neibourghood.
Posted on 03/25/2006 11:13:27 AM PST by PatrickHenry
Scientists funded by the European Space Agency have measured the gravitational equivalent of a magnetic field for the first time in a laboratory. Under certain special conditions the effect is much larger than expected from general relativity and could help physicists to make a significant step towards the long-sought-after quantum theory of gravity.
Just as a moving electrical charge creates a magnetic field, so a moving mass generates a gravitomagnetic field. According to Einstein's Theory of General Relativity, the effect is virtually negligible. However, Martin Tajmar, ARC Seibersdorf Research GmbH, Austria; Clovis de Matos, ESA-HQ, Paris; and colleagues have measured the effect in a laboratory.
Their experiment involves a ring of superconducting material rotating up to 6 500 times a minute. Superconductors are special materials that lose all electrical resistance at a certain temperature. Spinning superconductors produce a weak magnetic field, the so-called London moment. The new experiment tests a conjecture by Tajmar and de Matos that explains the difference between high-precision mass measurements of Cooper-pairs (the current carriers in superconductors) and their prediction via quantum theory. They have discovered that this anomaly could be explained by the appearance of a gravitomagnetic field in the spinning superconductor (This effect has been named the Gravitomagnetic London Moment by analogy with its magnetic counterpart).
Small acceleration sensors placed at different locations close to the spinning superconductor, which has to be accelerated for the effect to be noticeable, recorded an acceleration field outside the superconductor that appears to be produced by gravitomagnetism. "This experiment is the gravitational analogue of Faraday's electromagnetic induction experiment in 1831.
It demonstrates that a superconductive gyroscope is capable of generating a powerful gravitomagnetic field, and is therefore the gravitational counterpart of the magnetic coil. Depending on further confirmation, this effect could form the basis for a new technological domain, which would have numerous applications in space and other high-tech sectors" says de Matos. Although just 100 millionths of the acceleration due to the Earth’s gravitational field, the measured field is a surprising one hundred million trillion times larger than Einstein’s General Relativity predicts. Initially, the researchers were reluctant to believe their own results.
"We ran more than 250 experiments, improved the facility over 3 years and discussed the validity of the results for 8 months before making this announcement. Now we are confident about the measurement," says Tajmar, who performed the experiments and hopes that other physicists will conduct their own versions of the experiment in order to verify the findings and rule out a facility induced effect.
In parallel to the experimental evaluation of their conjecture, Tajmar and de Matos also looked for a more refined theoretical model of the Gravitomagnetic London Moment. They took their inspiration from superconductivity. The electromagnetic properties of superconductors are explained in quantum theory by assuming that force-carrying particles, known as photons, gain mass. By allowing force-carrying gravitational particles, known as the gravitons, to become heavier, they found that the unexpectedly large gravitomagnetic force could be modelled.
"If confirmed, this would be a major breakthrough," says Tajmar, "it opens up a new means of investigating general relativity and it consequences in the quantum world."
The results were presented at a one-day conference at ESA's European Space and Technology Research Centre (ESTEC), in the Netherlands, 21 March 2006. Two papers detailing the work are now being considered for publication. The papers can be accessed on-line at the Los Alamos pre-print server using the references: gr-qc/0603033 and gr-qc/0603032.
[Omitted contact info at end of article.]
The current problem with taxes being spent on research is that the research will get done by Asian grad students
And when the research is complete, the ideas on what to do with the results will go back to Asia with them
Did they? I could have sworn they took their inspiration from Tampere, Finland!
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This looks like it could be a Nobel Prize in the making, if the results turn out to be valid.
Perhaps -- but I don't think these guys would be the claimants!
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Somehow, it reminds me of this: The Podkletnov Gravitational-Shield. That gives me pause.
That was my first thought too.
What a strange coincidence that they'd come up with what sounds pretty much like an exact duplcate of Podkletnov's work -- except that Podkletnov had the jump on them by ten years!
Didn't I read something about 4 or 5 years ago about NASA working with his theories?
I have not kept up on any of this, and am by no means qualified to weigh in on the merits of Podkletnov's claims, however, I don't think it takes a rocket scientist (or "advanced propulsion theoretician") to see the striking similarities between the two experiments (i.e., rotating superconductors acting as gravity modifiers).
http://esamultimedia.esa.int/docs/gsp/Experimental_Detection.pdf
Lots more details.
Ahah! Page 19 & 20 (the very end of a long list of references):
21Podkletnov, E., and Nieminen, R., A Possibility of Gravitational Force Shielding by Bulk YBa2Cu3O7-x Superconductor. Physica C 203, 441-444 (1992). 2021Podkletnov, E., and Nieminen, R., A Possibility of Gravitational Force Shielding by Bulk YBa2Cu3O7-x Superconductor. Physica C 203, 441-444 (1992).22Podkletnov, E., Weak Gravitational Shielding Properties of Composite Bulk YBa2Cu3O7-x Superconductor Below 70 K under EM Field. cond-mat/9701074. 22Podkletnov, E., Weak Gravitational Shielding Properties of Composite Bulk YBa2Cu3O7-x Superconductor Below 70 K under EM Field. cond-mat/9701074.
Which means that they are being honest.
They've found something cool that they don't fully understand, and they are throwing it out there to the physics community, via the peer-review process, in the hopes that others can reproduce the experiments and/or make sense out of it.
The paper addresses the "gavitational shield" -- the effect discussed in the paper in an entirely different way. Where Podkletnov said that a spinning superconductor reduces the gravitational field above it, this effect is due to a superconducting ring undergoing angular acceleration. The new force acts in the same direction as the acceleration - tangentially to the edge superconducting ring rather than above its axis of rotation.
It's in binary.
This looks like fun.
Maybe this research will give somebody an idea.
From your link:
For example, maybe you get a warm feeling when you contemplate high-temperature superconductors, with critical temperatures around 100 K? Hah! The protons in the center of neutron stars are believed to become superconducting at 100 million K, so these are the real high-T_c champs of the universe.
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