Newtonian gravitational waves from a continuum

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Gravitational waves are being shown to derive directly from Newtonian dynamics for a continuous mass distribution, e.g. compressible fluids or equivalent. It is shown that the equations governing a continuous mass distribution, i.e. the inviscid Navier-Stokes equations for a general variable gravitational field g (t, x), are equivalent to a form identical to the Maxwell equations from electromagnetism, subject to a specified condition. The consequence of this equivalence is the creation of gravity waves that propagate at a finite speed. The latter implies that Newtonian gravitation as presented in this paper is not 'spooky action at a distance' but rather is similar to electromagnetic waves propagating at finite speed, despite the apparent form appearing in the integrated field formula. In addition, this proves that, in analogy to the Maxwell equations, the Newtonian gravitation equations are Lorentz invariant for waves propagating at the speed of light. Since gravitational waves were so far derived only from Einstein's general relativity theory, it becomes appealing to check if there is a connection between the Newtonian waves presented in this paper and the general relativity type of waves at least in a certain limit of overlapping validity, i.e. as a flat-space approximation. The latter is left for follow-up research.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number20230656
JournalProceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
Volume480
Issue number2290
DOIs
StatePublished - May 15 2024

Keywords

  • Maxwell equations
  • Newtonian dynamics
  • continuous mass
  • general relativity
  • gravitational waves

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Mathematics
  • General Engineering
  • General Physics and Astronomy

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Newtonian gravitational waves from a continuum'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this