Dark matter and energy explained by negative mass

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a paper proposing a model of dark matter and dark energy based on the concept of negative mass. Participants explore the implications of this model, including its potential to unify explanations for phenomena currently attributed to dark matter and dark energy, as well as the theoretical underpinnings and challenges associated with negative mass in cosmology.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express curiosity about the nature of the proposed negative mass dark fluid and its composition.
  • Others suggest that if 95% of the universe's mass is negative, it could imply a perfectly balanced universe of positive and negative mass, although this claim is challenged.
  • A participant argues that the paper does not assert an equal amount of positive and negative mass, but rather proposes a significant imbalance favoring negative mass.
  • Concerns are raised regarding the implications of negative mass on spacetime and its interactions with positive mass.
  • Some participants highlight the elegance of the theory, suggesting it could explain both dark matter and dark energy through a single substance.
  • There is a discussion about the relationship between negative mass and the cosmological constant, with some questioning the author's reasoning in the paper.
  • Participants debate the assumptions made about the stress-energy tensor for negative mass and its implications for energy conservation laws.
  • References to external critiques of the paper, including those by Sabine Hossenfelder, are mentioned, indicating a broader discourse on the topic.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach consensus on the validity of the negative mass model or its implications. Multiple competing views and uncertainties remain regarding the theoretical framework and interpretations of the paper.

Contextual Notes

Some participants note that the paper may omit critical considerations, such as the second Friedmann equation, which could affect the understanding of the dynamics involved. There is also uncertainty about the assumptions regarding the stress-energy tensor for negative mass.

  • #121
I think that the concept of a negative mass is silly.
By analogy, a velocity of less than zero is silly.
 
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  • #122
rootone said:
I think that the concept of a negative mass is silly.
By analogy, a velocity of less than zero is silly.

You mean like -10 km/s ?

Cheers
 
  • #123
rootone said:
By analogy, a velocity of less than zero is silly.

Not if you take direction into account.

If you mean a magnitude of velocity less than zero is silly, that's true.
 
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  • #124
Elroch said:
An Earth and a negative Earth-mass object so close they are nearly touching for a year will reach relativistic speeds (1g x 1 year is roughly the speed of light).

If they are both also Earth sized, yes.
 
  • #125
Elroch said:
the artificial, delicately balanced "runaway" situation is completely irrelevant to cosmic rays as stands, and Franes should have realized this if that is what he meant.

It sounds like you are going for the option that I described here:

PeterDonis said:
If the bound is too low, then Farnes's model predicts that such pairs can never produce a positive mass particle with high enough kinetic energy to account for cosmic rays at all.
 
  • #126
Elroch said:
For velocities to rise indefinitely, it would be necessary for the masses to be perfectly matched and the particles to have exactly zero initial relative velocity, so it simply would not occur naturally.
Hi Elroch:

I do not understand the above quote. I wonder if you would please explain in some detail what would happen if there were a +mass particle near a -mass particle, and the initial conditions are that relative to the center of mass, the velocity vectors of these two particles have the same magnitude and opposite directions. Note that the initial relative velocities are not zero. I do not have the skills to do the math with any confidence that I will not make mistakes, but intuitively it seems that if the two particles initially are moving towards each other, then the results would be that particles would follow each other at an accelerating speed which eventually would overwhelm the initial velocity.

Regards,
Buzz
 
  • #127
Buzz Bloom said:
Hi Elroch:

I do not understand the above quote. I wonder if you would please explain in some detail what would happen if there were a +mass particle near a -mass particle, and the initial conditions are that relative to the center of mass, the velocity vectors of these two particles have the same magnitude and opposite directions. Note that the initial relative velocities are not zero. I do not have the skills to do the math with any confidence that I will not make mistakes, but intuitively it seems that if the two particles initially are moving towards each other, then the results would be that particles would follow each other at an accelerating speed which eventually would overwhelm the initial velocity.

Regards,
Buzz
Well, both particles accelerate in the direction of the positive mass particle but, if the masses are equal, their relative velocity remains constant. So, given your description, they get further apart. The distance between them is thus O(time) and the interaction forces and the accelerations are O(time-2). So the velocities are asymptotically constant (the integral of an inverse square is bounded), as is also true for two positive masses that are not bound together (For anyone not familiar with the terminology, google "big O notation" and "asymptotic").
 
  • #128
Elroch said:
Well, both particles accelerate in the direction of the positive mass particle but, if the masses are equal, their relative velocity remains constant. So, given your description, they get further apart. The distance between them is thus O(time) and the interaction forces and the accelerations are O(time-2). So the velocities are asymptotically constant
Hi Elroch:

Thank you for your response to my question. I think the last part of the above quote from your post refers only to relative velocity Vr, and does not include velocity V0 relative to the original center or mass. If I understand your explanation correctly,
|V0| = |Vr| + F(t)​
Where F(t) is the increase in velocity due to the accelerations imparted to the each mass by the other mass. F(t) monotonically increases, but the rate of increase decreases as the particles becomes further apart and the acceleration decreases. Now, I understand F(t) is more complicated than a Newtonian calculation due to SR effects. If all this is correct, then I have an additional question.

The increase in |V0| implies an increase in kinetic energy, which might also be described as an increase in mass-energy. Question: Isn't this increase a violation of the conservation law regarding mass-energy? If so, doesn't this violation imply that the Farnes speculative idea fails to be a reasonable way to think about the physics?

Regards,
Buzz
 
Last edited:
  • #129
PeterDonis said:
Not if you take direction into account.

If you mean a magnitude of velocity less than zero is silly, that's true.
Yes. but mass doesn't have a direction.
Now that would be really weird.
 
  • #130

I have a simple question about Farnes’ paper that I have seen in any of the responses. Hope I didn’t miss it.
How could the negative mass “haloes” collect or group around galaxies if, as his figure 1 shows, there is no attraction (i,e., inward acceleration) between negative and positive mass? It seems that negative mass would tend to distribute itself uniformly throughout the universe?
 
  • #131
If the net mass is positive, all the masses (both negative and positive) would gravitate towards the centre of mass, at which point you can imagine the (positive) total net mass existing. While this is an imprecise description, I think it might clarify the issue.
 
  • #132
But. . . Well I guess I see your point. The positive masses coalesce, negative masses do not. Thus any encounter between the two is un-symmetric, with the smaller negative accelerating towards the larger positive. Thanks.
 

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