Gravitational Waves & Dark Matter: Is There a Connection?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion explores the potential connection between gravitational waves and dark matter, focusing on their interactions through gravity and the implications for detectability. Participants examine whether dark matter can produce gravitational waves or if its influence is limited to gravitational interactions.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that dark matter interacts with gravity, suggesting it could create gravitational waves if it were to interact in certain ways.
  • Others argue that gravitational waves and dark matter are not fundamentally connected beyond their gravitational interactions, asserting that dark matter does not produce detectable gravitational waves.
  • A participant notes that while dark matter affects geodesics, it does not clump together like ordinary matter, which is necessary for the production of detectable gravitational waves.
  • One participant challenges the notion that dark matter behaves differently from ordinary matter in the context of gravity.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the connection between gravitational waves and dark matter, with no consensus reached on whether a significant relationship exists.

Contextual Notes

Some claims depend on the definitions of "connection" and the nature of gravitational interactions, and there are unresolved questions regarding the detectability of gravitational waves produced by dark matter.

steveJOBS
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are gravitational waves somehow connected with dark matter??
 
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steveJOBS said:
are gravitational waves somehow connected with dark matter??

Yes, in the way that dark matter interacts via gravity. In this case, dark matter would create gravitational waves were it to interact.
 
I wouldn't say gravitational waves are "connected" with dark matter beyond the fact that dark matter interacts via gravity. Other than that they have no connection to each other.
 
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Yes in the sense that they interact with gravity. As for detectable wave? No. The dark matter will create geodesics that affect how we see the gravity waves, but it won't create it's own that are detectable. Only super dense objects like black holes or neutron stars produce gravitational waves that we can detect and dark matter doesn't clump together from what we can tell.
 
steveJOBS said:
are gravitational waves somehow connected with dark matter??
You seem to have a misconception that where gravity is concerned dark matter is different from ordinary matter. It is not.
 

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