How does gravity travel through wormholes?

In summary, the conversation discusses the possibility of a civilization using wormholes to alter the orbits of planets. It is suggested that the wormhole ends would need to be placed far from the planets to avoid any unintended effects, but if the goal is to intentionally alter the planets' trajectories, the ends would be placed closer. The effect of gravity can be calculated by knowing the masses and trajectories of the planets and the wormhole ends. It is also mentioned that the mouth of the wormhole would act as having some mass, and this mass would change if something massive passes through it. For further reading on this topic, a physicist author's popularized reference or Visser's "Lorentzian Wormholes" are suggested. Overall, the conversation
  • #1
FtlIsAwesome
Gold Member
204
0
Suppose a civilization had the technology to make wormholes. It would likely place them in orbit over its planets. Say one end orbiting Earth and the other end orbiting Mars.

Now, it makes sense that gravity would travel through the wormhole, and the planets would alter each others' orbit.
To simplify it, let's assume the the wormhole ends are massless--having a balanced amount of positive mass and negative mass.

To avoid this effect the wormhole ends need to be placed far from the planets, if you wanted to intentionally alter the planets' trajectories you'd place the ends closer; as a general rule.

How do we calculate the effect of gravity if we know the masses of planets, their trajectories, and the trajectories of the wormhole ends?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #2
The mouth of the wormhole is going to act like it has some mass M. Said mass will change if something massive passes through the wormhole, but not otherwise. So the equations that describe it's orbit won't be significantly different from the equations that describe anything else's orbit.

For a popularized reference (by a physicist author) see http://www.npl.washington.edu/AV/altvw69.html.

[add]If you want something slightly more formal, but still readable, try Visser's "Lorentzian Wormholes".
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Likes John M. Carr
  • #3
What type of wormhole are you talking about here? Normally we talks about wormholes that create a connection by extremely curved space. However, you have to remember that gravity itself is just curvature of space time in general relativity. And curvature of wormhole is so huge (at the singularity point), that curvature caused by Earth is negligibly small. Thus objects just move along Geodesics of curvature of wormholes.
 

1. How do wormholes affect the path of gravity?

Wormholes are theoretical tunnels in space-time that connect two distant points, allowing for faster travel between them. Gravity, being a fundamental force in the universe, is affected by the curvature of space-time caused by wormholes. This can cause changes in the direction and intensity of gravity as it travels through the wormhole.

2. Can gravity travel through a wormhole?

Yes, gravity can travel through a wormhole just like any other form of energy. However, the path of gravity may be altered or distorted as it passes through the curved space-time of the wormhole.

3. Does gravity travel faster through a wormhole?

There is currently no evidence to suggest that gravity travels faster through a wormhole compared to its speed in normal space-time. In fact, the theory of general relativity states that the speed of gravity is the same as the speed of light, which is a constant in the universe.

4. Can we use wormholes to manipulate gravity?

As of now, wormholes are purely theoretical and have not been proven to exist. Therefore, we cannot use them to manipulate gravity. However, some theories suggest that advanced civilizations could potentially harness the power of wormholes to manipulate gravity in the future.

5. How does gravity travel through a traversable wormhole compared to a non-traversable one?

A traversable wormhole is a type of wormhole that allows for safe passage through it, while a non-traversable wormhole does not. In both cases, gravity would travel through the wormhole in a similar manner, but a non-traversable wormhole may have more extreme effects on the path of gravity due to its unstable nature.

Similar threads

  • Special and General Relativity
Replies
4
Views
2K
  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
Replies
2
Views
856
  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
Replies
11
Views
1K
  • Special and General Relativity
Replies
4
Views
2K
  • Special and General Relativity
Replies
2
Views
784
Replies
9
Views
990
  • Other Physics Topics
Replies
9
Views
1K
  • Special and General Relativity
Replies
8
Views
2K
  • Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Replies
28
Views
2K
  • Sci-Fi Writing and World Building
Replies
3
Views
2K
Back
Top