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Testing Einstein's Theory of Relativity near a black hole
More than 100 years after Albert Einstein published his iconic general theory of relativity, it is beginning to fray at the edges, says Andrea Ghez, UCLA professor of physics and astronomy. Now, in the most comprehensive test of general relativity near the monstrous black hole at the center of our galaxy, NSF-funded Ghez and her research team report in the July 25th 2020 edition of the journal Science that Einstein’s theory holds up. “Einstein’s right, at least for now,” says Ghez. “We can absolutely rule out Newton’s law of gravity. Our observations are consistent with Einstein’s general theory of relativity. However, his theory is definitely showing vulnerability. It cannot fully explain gravity inside a black hole, and at some point we will need to move beyond Einstein’s theory to a more comprehensive theory of gravity that explains what a black hole is.” The National Science Foundation has funded Ghez’s research for the last 25 years.
Credit: Talking Eyes Media, www.talkingeyesmedia.org
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