Theory of relativity
In the field of physics, relativity improved the science of elementary particles and their fundamental interactions, along with ushering in the nuclear age.With relativity, cosmology and astrophysics predicted extraordinary astronomical phenomena such as neutron stars, black holes, and gravitational waves.It was introduced in Einstein's 1905 paper "On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies" (for the contributions of many other physicists and mathematicians, see History of special relativity).The development of general relativity began with the equivalence principle, under which the states of accelerated motion and being at rest in a gravitational field (for example, when standing on the surface of the Earth) are physically identical.Einstein discussed his idea with mathematician Marcel Grossmann and they concluded that general relativity could be formulated in the context of Riemannian geometry which had been developed in the 1800s.[12] The predictions of special relativity have been confirmed in numerous tests since Einstein published his paper in 1905, but three experiments conducted between 1881 and 1938 were critical to its validation.[20] They obtained a null result, and concluded that "there is no effect ... unless the velocity of the solar system in space is no more than about half that of the earth in its orbit".[19][21] That possibility was thought to be too coincidental to provide an acceptable explanation, so from the null result of their experiment it was concluded that the round-trip time for light is the same in all inertial reference frames.[23] It was designed to test the transverse Doppler effect – the redshift of light from a moving source in a direction perpendicular to its velocity—which had been predicted by Einstein in 1905.Other experiments include, for instance, relativistic energy and momentum increase at high velocities, experimental testing of time dilation, and modern searches for Lorentz violations.Global positioning systems such as GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo, must account for all of the relativistic effects in order to work with precision, such as the consequences of the Earth's gravitational field.
RelativismThe Einstein Theory of RelativityGW150914spacetimephysicsAlbert Einsteinspecial relativitygeneral relativitygravitycosmologicaltheoretical physicsastronomytheory of mechanicsIsaac Newtondimensionalrelativity of simultaneitykinematicgravitationaltime dilationlength contractionelementary particlesnuclear agecosmologyastrophysicsastronomical phenomenaneutron starsblack holesgravitational wavesHistory of special relativityHistory of general relativityIntroductionHistoryTimelineMathematical formulationEquivalence principleWorld linePseudo-Riemannian manifoldKepler problemGravitational lensingGravitational redshiftGravitational time dilationFrame-draggingGeodetic effectEvent horizonSingularityBlack holeSpacetime diagramsMinkowski spacetimeEinstein–Rosen bridgeLinearized gravityEinstein field equationsFriedmannGeodesicsMathisson–Papapetrou–DixonHamilton–Jacobi–EinsteinPost-NewtonianKaluza–Klein theoryQuantum gravitySolutionsSchwarzschildinteriorReissner–NordströmEinstein–Rosen wavesWormholeGödelKerr–NewmanKerr–Newman–de SitterKasnerLemaître–TolmanTaub–NUTRobertson–WalkerOppenheimer–Snyderpp-wavevan Stockum dustWeyl−Lewis−PapapetrouHartle–ThorneEinsteinLorentzHilbertPoincaréde SitterReissnerNordströmEddingtonZwickyLemaîtreOppenheimerWheelerRobertsonBardeenWalkerChandrasekharEhlersPenroseHawkingRaychaudhuriTaylorvan StockumNewmanThorneothersAlbert A. MichelsonHendrik LorentzHenri PoincaréMax PlanckHermann MinkowskiGermanprinciple of relativityAlfred Buchereratomic physicsnuclear physicsquantum mechanicsmathematicsphenomenaquasarsmicrowave background radiationpulsarsOn the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodiesclassical mechanicslaws of physicsinertial frame of referencespeed of lightvacuumMichelson–Morley experimentclocksMass–energy equivalence