N E W   G R A V I T Y   T H E O R Y

                                  by Igor Pavlov  and Tom Gigliotti

                                                     May 5, 2007

                                           (pavlovi@bellsouth.net)

          Space does not warp, stretch or shrink. Force fields do. Gravity, for instance. And gravitation has limits.

          What is Gravity?

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          This webpage is not a thesis or a detailed analysis of my theory. It is an article split into several pages. The purpose of this article, before anything else, is to stake a claim to the new theory. Also, it is a dipstick to measure the response of the scientific community to this totally new idea.

          Although I address professionals in this presentation, it is written for a wider audience. I thought that making it too technical could turn off that audience. I tried to use as few technical terms and details as possible.

          Everything in the universe is held together by the force we call gravity. Whatever material in existence that did not coalesce yet into some kind of a body is in the process of doing so by the force of gravity.

          There is a pattern in this process of matter consolidation. Gases and debris in the interstellar space tend to form spherical bodies – suns, planets, moons - and gravitational force holds those together. That hints on whatever the nature of that force is its force field is SPHERICAL and the direction of its pull is toward the center of the mass.

          Of course there are no gravitational spheres in the physical sense. We split gravitational force field into spherical gravitational zones mathematically. Since these zones are spherical, we simply call them gravity spheres.

           But, before we go deeper into the subject, let us refresh what we know about another force called magnetism, briefly. Two magnets either attract or repel each other. Poles with opposite polarity attract and poles with the same polarity repel. Each magnet maintains a force field around itself. The force field is a space around the magnet saturated with lines of force (a concept useful for visualization) emanating from one pole of the magnet and entering the other pole. The force weakens with distance from the magnet.  At a certain distance from the magnet, its force lines break. Magnetic force field has limits. To extend its force lines into the infinity would require infinite energy.

          Now, back to the spherical force -- gravity. Gravitational force fields exist around any material body, from an atom to a black hole. The strength of the force field depends on the amount of matter (mass) it contains. The larger the mass, the stronger the field and farther out it extends before it breaks. A mass and its gravitational force field (the sum of gravitational components) form a mass-field unit. The gravitational force field is an extension of the mass, it envelops the mass. A matter forming a mass falls into itself by the force of gravity from within attempting to assume the most compact shape with even surface. A ball is that shape. Now, why do we split the force field into spherical zones and not treat it as one continuous homogeneous spherical force field? Because apparently gravity obeys certain distribution laws, similar to electron orbitals, or shells, in atoms but on the grand scale. Thus an atom could be taken as a model for gravity. An atom’s nucleus is a positively charged body encircled by electron orbitals (a concept useful for visualization again) -- electron shells. Gravity "layers" are gravitational shells. Presently we have no tools, physical or mathematical, to measure the quantum states of those "layers", although these states must exist (see the rings of Saturn). Objects orbiting a body of a certain mass tend to stay at the fixed distance from that mass, depending on the object's velocity, and the distribution laws apply.

          A gravity layer is a structure (please remember that the division of a gravitational force field into layers is only mathematical), a fragile structure, particularly the outermost layer. It has a breaking point. Gravity units, strings, gravitons, whichever, can be stretched only so far, and the number of strings and the cohesive force connecting them are limited by the mass within the force field. In other words, gravity has limits. To stretch gravity into the infinity would require infinite mass and infinite energy.

          Each layer could be viewed as an energy mesh confined to the layer.  Let’s call it a gravitational mesh, a closed circuit similar to an electronic circuit.

          If we cut a wire in an electronic circuit, we disrupt it. The circuit becomes open and no longer functions. Every force field is a closed circuit, in a manner of speaking. Gravity is no exception. By conventional concept, it extends infinitely. If it did, it would become an open circuit and would not be able to function. Each gravity layer is that closed circuit that makes gravity functional. The energy level in each layer is determined by the mass and by the radius from the center of the mass. The gradient between gravity layers increases with distance from the mass. Gravitational force also falls off with increasing distance from the mass, as per the Newton's equation; it  weakens until the outermost gravity layer approaches zero in strength and breaks. That is where the gravity of the mass ends. Closer to the mass the gradient is smaller, the layers density and strength is great and increasing rapidly. That produces an interesting effect, called the tidal effect, on any incoming body. Particularly if the gravitational field of the main mass is strong. The front end of the body is pulled (or you might say accelerated) with significantly greater force than its tail: the body could be torn apart. Remember the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet which hit the planet Jupiter in 1994? Before it hit it broke up into 21 discernible pieces. It appears that Jupiter was not pleased with the arrival of the uninvited guest.

          So what is gravity exactly? The traditional Newtonian view is as follows. Every body in the universe attracts every other body. This assumption (and it is only an assumption) implies that there is almost infinite number of force lines emanating from each material body, no matter how small, to every other body in the universe, no matter how small and no matter how far it is. That is a flagrant absurdity of unimaginable dimensions. Let’s examine how gravity really works.

         Gravitational system (a mass and its gravitational force field) is an isolated system, a system whose strength remains constant regardless of changes within the system itself. There is a perfect balance between a mass and its gravitational force field maintained for billions of years since its creation with very little change. Gravitational energy is not emitted into the infinity of space like light but remains within the gravitational force field of the mass. The field is a force field similar to a force field of a magnet though it is spherical (unless the mass is small enough to remain in a non-spherical shape like an asteroid, for example). You might say the force field holds the mass together as one unit. If something sliced the Earth in two, it would merge the next moment because it has one gravitational force field confining it. So, what's new? A gravitational force field has limits. It does not extend into the infinity of space, it remains where it originated: around its mass. If the mass does not change, its gravitational force field does not change either. But it is not static, it is simply in the state of balance with its mass, in the process of constant regeneration. Gravitational field is similar to a standing wave. Water in the standing wave moves, but the wave preserves its location and shape. So does a gravitational force field. 

          This theory is based on a fundamental assumption that gravitation has limits. The logic of gravity limits follows. 

          Gravity is not a radiation, it is a force. As a force, gravity must have a force field. A force field is an aggregate of force units. Gravitational force field is no exception, it can be broken into units: gravitons or something else. Since these units form a field they must interact with each other: mutual attraction or energy exchange. 

          There is a limit to how small these units can be, and there must be a limit to distance between units when their interaction breaks. Gravity weakens with distance from the source. Its units become farther and farther apart from each other. Their interaction weakens. At the far enough distance the interaction breaks. That's the limit of gravity for any mass. 

          Okay, now lets step aside for a minute. It is worth to glance at the big picture, the picture of cosmos. Our universe is only a miniscule spec in the voids of cosmos. Cosmos is endless in all directions. Try to imagine it, it is very hard to see something which has no borders no matter how far one goes, no end ever and ever. The "ever and ever" becomes time with no beginning and no end, ever. It always was and it always will be. The idea of god becomes insignificant, a tiny local issue confined to a small planet called Earth. Cosmos has no god. It is endless space and everlasting time. That's the big picture. 

          Had enough of the grand philosophy? Fine, back to the little things. 

          What about gravitational interactions? When a smaller mass approaches a larger mass, their gravitational force fields overlap first. It is unknown how the fields of both masses interact with each other. My guess is that they don't, they just pass through each other unobstructed. Only when the smaller mass enters the gravitational force field of the larger mass (or orbits it), the interaction takes place. The smaller mass interacts with the gravitational force field of the larger mass, not with the larger mass itself. There is no immediate exchange of information between the masses. It is not necessary to align gravitational forces between the masses because the alignment is already there, via the force field. There is no delay of interaction, there is no aberration. The lack of gravitational aberration has nothing to do with instantaneous propagation of gravity. The presence of the gravitational force field negates the need of such. The interaction is between the coming (or orbiting) mass and the gravitational force field of the main mass only. The field already has the mass' parameters (and force) in it. Those are there since the time when the mass was created billions of years ago. They change very little with time. The speed of gravity propagation is relevant only when mass changes take place: something big hits the mass, or the mass disintegrates in an explosion. Then the changes in parameters propagate throughout the gravitational force field, like in all other force fields. Until that time, the original conditions are already in place and they rule. It is as if masses exchange information instantaneously, the same effect. Neither Newton nor Einstein could visualize this concept of gravity.

          Another important point: the smaller mass within the gravitational force field of the larger mass contributes to the force field of the larger mass. It's like in the human body: every muscle has its domain and function, but it also contributes to the total body strength. Similarly, the components of a galaxy (all stars, etc.) contribute to the total gravitational force field of that galaxy.

          A cluster of galaxies is the largest gravitational unit in the voids of the universe. But no matter how large that unit is it has its gravitational limit.

          As we stated above, gravity does not extend infinitely. As a matter of fact, gravity range is quite limited. Gravity of a star, like our sun for example, extends only to the edges of the Solar System, somewhere outside the Oort cloud. Supermassive black holes, you might say, are the heaviest objects in the universe. How far does their gravity extend? Only to the edges of galaxies they hold together sometimes covering neighboring dwarf galaxies which become the main galaxy's satellites, and perhaps touch nearby galaxies if there is a cluster of galaxies. Beyond that, in the intergalactic space, there is no gravity. That explains extensive voids in the universe, gravity is a local phenomenon, not universal.

          Presently, we are searching for gravitational waves from distant objects, like double neutron stars and black holes. What we have within any solar or galactic system is gravitational update in the form of waves similar to electromagnetic waves. But gravitational updates take place only within the gravitational force field of a mass or a system. If we are outside of that particular gravitational field, we cannot detect its gravitational update. Incidentally, a gravitational update is not gravitational waves in spacetime.

          Cosmic explosions, like novas, supernovas and alike, do not generate gravitational waves. Their gravitational force field simply breaks up with the mass. No waves. Double neutron stars do produce gravitational disturbances, but those should be called gravitational fluctuations, not waves, and those are, again, a local phenomena. Thus, the LIGO project is a mirage.

          Intercluster space is gravity free. What that means is that if you were traveling in that space, your spaceship would not be pulled in any direction. You would carry only your own little gravitational field around your spaceship until you approach another galaxy and enter its gravitational influence. We are living in a runaway universe – eventually it will scatter because there is no universal gravity to bring it back into one unit. There will never be a Big Crunch. The Big Bang is a one-time event. The 'fireball' of the Big Bang expanded with velocity a million times that of the speed of light, which suggests that more than ninety nine percent of its substance escaped with superphotic speed and cannot be seen. What is visible to us as our universe is the leftovers of the Big Bang expanding in its wake with subluminal speed. The edges of the universe are expanding faster than its interior but not fast enough to become invisible. But what is beyond the Big Bang? Perhaps, on the big scale, the Big Bang is just another spark in the endless stretches of Cosmos -- one of many.

           But... back to gravity, that elusive but all-permiating force. Nothing can stop gravity except its own limitations: its range and density. Within its range, a mass's gravitational field penetrates everything. It is invulnerable and rules within its domain. It determines the pace of things to come. Its density, the highest at the surface of its mass, slows down all natural processes at the location, including atomic interactions. It is harder to swim in molasses than in water, the same concept. That accounts for the "gravitational time dilation" totally misinterpreted by the general relativity: atomic clocks run slower in a stronger gravitational field. Also, equating acceleration with gravity is just an analogy. It should not be taken literally. It is like equating saccharin with sugar because both substances are sweet.  General relativity, a relativistic theory of gravity, was built on erroneous assumptions, therefore it is in error.

          Now, to the essence of things. What is a force field, any force field? That is a hazy area. I am tempted to say, "Hell, as the rest of the science world, I have no idea". We know the force field's effects, but not its substance. There are many theories, take your pick, but the true answer is elusive. 

          There is another widely accepted misconception: the dark energy. It is viewed as the cause of accelerating expansion of the universe. What is observed is that the outer layers of the universe expand faster than its inner layers.

          The true answer to this phenomenon is very simple. The Big Bang was no more than an enormous explosion. Its outer layers of the newly formed matter expanded with velocity perhaps a million times greater than the speed of light, while the inner layers expanded with progressively lesser velocity just like in any conventional explosion. The innermost layers of the formed matter expanded with only a fraction of the velocity of the outermost layers.

          We cannot observe the outer layers of the Big Bang because they are expanding with velocity greater than the speed of light. What we can see is only a small fraction of the total matter created during the Big Bang expanding with velocity below the speed of light. That is our universe.  New studies of the fine-structure constant (actually, it is a variable), which characterizes the strength of electric and magnetic fields, confirm this hypothesis. The outer layers of the universe are expanding faster than the inner layers creating an illusion of acceleration. Still, each layer is expanding with the constant velocity, perhaps even decelerating pulled by its heavy "tail" of inner layers.

          There is no dark energy, just the original momentum set in motion!

          And there is another important point. When mathematics detached itself from physics, it became abstract and meaningless entity just like Hawking's, bred in dreams, singularity. It became mathemagics, not true mathematics. Math can help to compile and describe experimental observations and discuss data, but it cannot replace reason. Claims and theories, particularly those that are counter-intuitive -- such as time dilation, length contraction and mass distortion -- require extraordinary evidence before they can be accepted as valid scientific fact. Yet there is not even one double-blind experiment that has been conducted by competent researchers and has been replicated by another team of competent scientists with results that support these theories.

          Rings of Saturn

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          Rings of Saturn are the showcase of the sphere theory.

          During the formation of the Solar System, Saturn became one of the four gas giants. At that time, one of its moons  was hit by a comparable mass which came from another part of the forming Solar system. The collision of catastrophic dimensions disintegrated both masses. A small part of the debris escaped Saturn's gravity into outer space. The largest part of the mess fell into Saturn. But a sizeable part of the debris scattered and remained in orbit.

          If you spin an object on a string, you will notice that the object and the string form a flat circle and that the object tends to remain in the plane of that circle called the plane of rotation. What happened around Saturn is something similar – with the debris as the object and Saturn’s gravity pull as the string.

          In a relatively short time (a few thousand years), the debris, spinning in the same direction set by the initial momentum, drifted into the plane of rotation of Saturn and formed ‘belts’. We see these belts as rings of Saturn. Their thickness is about a mile and their separation equals the gradient of the zone at that location. We see hundreds of them, perhaps thousands, with a few gaps cleared by small moons. When we look at the rings from above either pole of Saturn, we see the map of gravity zones -- a cross section image. In the future, we will be able to see the rings in greater detail, perhaps even count them and measure the gradient. The rings of Saturn form a distinctive geometric pattern of concentric circles. This pattern is not electromagnetic or atmospheric. It is a gravitational pattern, it cannot be anything else.

          What’s next?

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          We want to know where we stand and where we are going. We developed many scientific tools. We are searching for answers. But instead of finding answers, we generate more and more questions. Isn’t it time to reverse the trend?

          What if some of our assumptions are wrong? What if the foundations on which we’ve built our sciences are shaky? Take, as an example, both special and general theory of relativity. We don’t have to go all the way to the Big Bang to see that the speed of light is not the absolute limit no matter what the abstract equations show. Equations are based on assumptions. Some of those assumptions can be in error. The supernova of January 2002 sent its radiation expanding as a ball many times the speed of light. The sequence of photographs taken by the Hubble Space Telescope over a two-year period clearly showed the event. Some scientists, in order to save the face of special relativity, are trying to explain the phenomenon in terms of light echo representing it as a parabollic curve, but that doesn't wash. Apparent speed could be an illusion, but the distance of expansion is not. One can measure it quite precisely. Light echoes do not come in one surprise package. They come in slow motion because it takes time for light to reach the outermost layers of surrounding dust before being reflected -- extra years after the beginning of the event. Light echoes produce the illusion of subluminal, NOT superluminal speed. The star called Monocerotis did erupt as observed. The eruption was the real thing, not just a 'mysterious' flash of light. Photos show expanding layers of 'dust' preserving their basic shape, the effect which is incompatible with the nature of reflections.

          Then what about bent space, as described in general relativity? Does it really bend? Or there is a much simpler explanation for bending of light? A curved gravitational force field, for instance, and not the bent space? Occam's razor! Einstein did not realize that when he painted curved space, he described, in reality, curved gravitational force field. Space is not a field or a substance. Space is only a measurement -- size, distance. It is absurd to see it any other way. Spacetime is only a mathematical abstraction not applicable to physics just like the singularity. Mathematics is physic's tool, not an entity of its own.

          Gravity layers are not perfect spheres. A gravity sphere is flattened somewhat at the poles of a rotating mass, as if its gravitational field is rotating with the mass. A spiral galaxy, for example, carries a pronounced lentil-shaped gravitational field. That explains the effect of gravitational lens which splits the image of a distant bright object in two when the object is directly behind the mass with a strong gravitational field and faces us edgewise.

          Gravitational force field spins with its mass, though its momentum lags behind the momentum of the mass progressively with the distance from the mass (see wings of any spiral galaxy). And, like the mass, the gravitational force field has its poles.

          The structure of gravity spheres is quite orderly. Still, its sections, close to the poles, are able to rotate just like portions of our atmosphere due to the Earth's rotation (Coriolis force) and the associated Rossby wave effect creating "swirls". The swirls in our atmosphere are unpredictable (low pressure regions and hurricanes). Gravitational field swirls within gravity spheres, on the other hand, are orderly due to the uniform distribution of the field. Their size and the speed of rotation depends on the mass and density of the body. Also, they fit in the pattern. If the swirls remained circular, they could not fit, gaps would exist. But gravity allows no gaps. Thus, the swirls assume a shape with sides which fit neatly with the adjacent swirls in the pattern. Even more, the pattern itself must fit  in the chain of swirls end to end around the body. That could be achieved only if the number of swirls is integer (fraction would allow a gap). Have a look at bees' honeycombs. Each cell is hexagonal, it fits within the pattern, it cannot be circular because then it would not fit. Something similar goes on within gravity spheres. Their structure is rigid and, under certain conditions,  the swirls become hexagons, they fit. If you wish to see an example, observe the orderly hexagonal formation at the North Pole of Saturn. That is not an atmospheric phenomenon, it is gravitational, just like the rings. It rotates with the planet, not with prevailing winds. I think the Nature is smarter than we give her a credit for. A square shape would not fit on the surface of a ball, neither would a pentagon, or a seven-sided shape, and so on. But hexagon fits.

          Saturn accomodates six swirls in the chain close to its North Pole, thus creating another hexagonal formation at the pole clearly outlined by the clouds in the region, which also fits. That is a unique configuration: hexagon. There are no other gravitational configurations in the universe because other configurations cannot exist: they would not fit the pattern.

          GS theory fits neatly in the Standard Model of particle physics. Gravitational force field is just another force field. Thus, my dear colleague, you can develop the Unified Theory including gravitation with graviton or a string as the force carrier. Do you wish to try? A word of caution: working on the Unified Theory, do not attempt to reconcile the quantum field theory employed by the Standard Model with general relativity. General relativity is a fundamental error of the modern physics.

          Einstein's vision of gravity is a choo-choo image of the real train.   Einstein was probably very much surprised and amused when other physicists accepted it literally, but decided, "Well, I will go with the flow and see how far it will take me." Everyone is admiring the king's new clothes, but the king is naked!

          And what about us, here and now? We live by the law formulated by... would you believe it?.. by a five-year-old little girl, a beautiful little girl with a clear mind! All you knowledgeable guys including me!.. She said, "We are not going to fall off the Earth, are we? Because it holds us, right?"