A new discovery has been made that once again proves Einstein really knew what he was talking about. Under extreme conditions, many scientists used to believe that the concept of General Relativity might not be accurate.
However, a strange pair of cosmic objects, a massive neutron star and a white dwarf star to be exact, has allowed scientists to finally compare the competing theories of gravity. The neutron star in known as a "pulsar," and is a spinning star twice the mass of our own sun; while the white dwarf is an extremely dense, dying star.
The pair were discovered by the National Science Foundation's Green Bank Telescope, and have been analyzed by researchers through both visible light and radio observations. This was a big find for astronomers, as the binary system was the perfect testing ground for theories of gravity, due in large part to the pair's close orbit, and the fact that the white dwarf is compact, but not another neutron star.
This allowed scientists to study the rate of decay in their orbit, and the subsequent gravitational waves being emitted. Some researchers previously believed that under conditions like these, the equations of General Relativity would not prove accurate in determining the level of gravitational radiation. In fact, there are multiple competing theories that some thought would be more precise in these situations.
Interestingly though, it looks like Einstein's theory held up without a hitch.
"We thought this system might be extreme enough to show a breakdown in General Relativity," said researcher Paulo Freire in a news release. "But instead, Einstein's predictions held up quite well."
The next step will be to study the gravitational radiation caused when other dense pairs such as pulsars and black holes spiral towards each other.
The research team's findings were published in the aptly named journal Science.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
