Time Dilation b/w Galaxies: Dark Matter Impact?

In summary, the conversation discusses the potential effects of time dilation near a black hole on our perception of time in our galaxy and how it could affect our measurements of distant galaxies. However, the experts argue that the effects are negligible and would not explain the phenomenon of dark matter. The conversation also mentions the role of speed in time dilation, but calculations are needed to determine its significance. Ultimately, the experts reject the idea that time dilation could explain dark matter and require further evidence to support this claim.
  • #1
AndrewDes
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If time slows down near a black hole then doesn't it stand to reason that time is slower in our galaxy than inbetween galaxies. If that's the case, wouldn't our measurements of distant galaxies be over estimated do to time being faster intergalacticly. Would this time dilation help explain part of dark matter?
 
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  • #2
AndrewDes said:
If time slows down near a black hole then doesn't it stand to reason that time is slower in our galaxy than inbetween galaxies. If that's the case, wouldn't our measurements of distant galaxies be over estimated do to time being faster intergalacticly. Would this time dilation help explain part of dark matter?
Dark matter is postulated to explain the rate of galaxy rotation, which is higher than expected if we consider only visible matter. See here, for example:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galaxy_rotation_curve

Gravitational time dilation effects on observations from Earth are effectively negligible. If you do the maths, you are talking about something like milliseconds per century difference.
 
  • #3
AndrewDes said:
If time slows down near a black hole then doesn't it stand to reason that time is slower in our galaxy than inbetween galaxies. If that's the case, wouldn't our measurements of distant galaxies be over estimated do to time being faster intergalacticly.
Not to any significant extent. Even super-massive black holes have negligible time dilation effects at this distance.
AndrewDes said:
Would this time dilation help explain part of dark matter?
No. Galactic rotation rates vary with distance from the core because they aren't rigid discs, and the difference between their observed rotation profile and the prediction based on visible matter only isn't a constant factor, which it would need to be if it were to be explained by a mis-calibration of our clocks.
 
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  • #4
Ibix said:
Not to any significant extent. Even super-massive black holes have
Just to put a number on this - if you replaced the Sun with a million-solar-mass black hole, Earth clocks would tick 1% slow compared to a clock in intergalactic space (i.e., in the time it took an Earth clock to tick an hour, a clock in intergalactic space would tick an extra 3.6s). If, instead, you replaced Alpha Centauri with that same black hole then Earth clocks would tick something like 0.000005% slow (if I counted zeros right that means the intergalactic clock would get less than an extra millisecond per Earthly hour). The galactic core is a long way further away than that.
 
  • #5
Ibix said:
Just to put a number on this - if you replaced the Sun with a million-solar-mass black hole, Earth clocks would tick 1% slow compared to a clock in intergalactic space (i.e., in the time it took an Earth clock to tick an hour, a clock in intergalactic space would tick an extra 3.6s). If, instead, you replaced Alpha Centauri with that same black hole then Earth clocks would tick something like 0.000005% slow (if I counted zeros right that means the intergalactic clock would get less than an extra millisecond per Earthly hour). The galactic core is a long way further away than that.
Im suggesting that our preception of time is being slowed because of the combined energy well of our entire galaxy, not just the black hole. Even if it's a small difference between our time and intergalactic Time, it would have a compounded effect on something we are perceiving as being billions of light years away.
 
  • #6
AndrewDes said:
Im suggesting that our preception of time is being slowed because of the combined energy well of our entire galaxy, not just the black hole. Even if it's a small difference between our time and intergalactic Time, it would have a compounded effect on something we are perceiving as being billions of light years away.
No it wouldn't. And, if you say it does, then let's see your calculations.
 
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  • #7
PeroK said:
No it wouldn't. And, if you say it does, then let's see your calculations.
I don't have the math skills to do such a calculation but if a million solar mass object replacing our sun would slow time down 1%, then looking at the 1.5 trillion solar mass of the milky way as 1 object would slow time down significantly more as compared to space unaffected by gravity. Also speed affects Time, that's why the ISS time travels. So wouldn't the speed at witch our planet is moving+the speed the sun is moving+the speed the galaxy is moving all add up to some effect? Combine our relative speed with being in that 1
5 trillion SM gravity well and we must be getting into some sort of significant difference compared to being stationary in intergalactic space.
 
  • #8
AndrewDes said:
I don't have the math skills to do such a calculation

So how can you say that those who do are wrong?
 
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  • #9
AndrewDes said:
I don't have the math skills to do such a calculation but if a million solar mass object replacing our sun would slow time down 1%, then looking at the 1.5 trillion solar mass of the milky way as 1 object would slow time down significantly more as compared to space unaffected by gravity.
One million solar masses at one A.U. distance versus 1.5 trillion solar masses at some 25,000 light year average radius?

So about 1500 times more mass and about about 25,000 times 62,000 = 1.5 billion times more radius. That's about a factor of one million less gravitational time dilation

[Gravitational time dilation scales with gravitational potential. Gravitational potential scales proportionately to mass and inverse proportion to radius]

Also speed affects Time, that's why the ISS time travels. So wouldn't the speed at witch our planet is moving+the speed the sun is moving+the speed the galaxy is moving all add up to some effect? Combine our relative speed with being in that 1
5 trillion SM gravity well and we must be getting into some sort of significant difference compared to being stationary in intergalactic space.
No. Unless you can do the math, chattering on about small things adding up to big things does not cut it. Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don't. Math is what can tell us which it is.
 
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  • #10
AndrewDes said:
Im suggesting that our preception of time is being slowed because of the combined energy well of our entire galaxy, not just the black hole.
No - a (relatively) tiny volume around a black hole is the only place in the galaxy where time dilation is at all significant. All of the rest of the dynamics is well explained by Newtonian gravity, meaning that time dilation is completely negligible.
AndrewDes said:
Even if it's a small difference between our time and intergalactic Time, it would have a compounded effect on something we are perceiving a
I don't know why you'd think that. Typical gravitational time dilation calculations (like the one I did) compare a clock at some finite distance from a massive body to a clock at infinity. There's no further compounding to be done.
AndrewDes said:
if a million solar mass object replacing our sun would slow time down 1%, then looking at the 1.5 trillion solar mass of the milky way as 1 object would slow time down significantly more as compared to space unaffected by gravity.
A 1.5 trillion solar mass object compressed into a few trillion kilometers diameter would cause significant time dilation for objects orbiting close to it, yes. The galaxy is much, much, much more spread out than that, and consequently its gravity is much less intense. Nowhere is its gravitational potential so high that you get significant time dilation.
AndrewDes said:
Also speed affects Time,
That's a serious oversimplification, but for orbital motion it's close enough.
AndrewDes said:
So wouldn't the speed at witch our planet is moving+the speed the sun is moving+the speed the galaxy is moving all add up to some effect?
Nothing significant. Stellar speeds are nowhere close to the speed of light, so the effect is negligible again since kinematic time dilation is proportional to ##1/\sqrt{1-v^2/c^2}##.
 
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  • #11
AndrewDes said:
I don't have the math skills to do such a calculation but if a million solar mass object replacing our sun would slow time down 1%, then looking at the 1.5 trillion solar mass of the milky way as 1 object would slow time down significantly more as compared to space unaffected by gravity. Also speed affects Time, that's why the ISS time travels. So wouldn't the speed at witch our planet is moving+the speed the sun is moving+the speed the galaxy is moving all add up to some effect? Combine our relative speed with being in that 1
5 trillion SM gravity well and we must be getting into some sort of significant difference compared to being stationary in intergalactic space.
Most of the mass of the Milky Way is too far away to entail gravitational time dilation on Earth. The Earth is not in a deep gravitational well. In this respect, the calculations are everything.
 
  • #12
AndrewDes said:
dosnt it stand to reason that time is slower in our galaxy than inbetween galaxies.

Slower in principle, yes. Slower by enough to appreciably affect any of the measurements you describe, no.
 
  • #13
The OP question has been answered. Thread closed.
 

1. What is time dilation between galaxies?

Time dilation between galaxies refers to the phenomenon where time passes at a different rate in different parts of the universe. This is due to the effects of gravity and the expansion of the universe.

2. How does dark matter impact time dilation between galaxies?

Dark matter is believed to make up a large portion of the mass in the universe. Its gravitational effects can cause time dilation between galaxies by bending the fabric of space-time and affecting the flow of time.

3. Is time dilation between galaxies significant?

Yes, time dilation between galaxies can be significant. In areas with high concentrations of dark matter, time can pass at a slower rate compared to areas with lower concentrations of dark matter.

4. How is time dilation between galaxies measured?

Time dilation between galaxies can be measured using various methods, such as observing the redshift of light from distant galaxies or studying the motion of stars in galaxies. These measurements can help determine the amount of dark matter present and its impact on time dilation.

5. What implications does time dilation between galaxies have on our understanding of the universe?

Time dilation between galaxies plays a crucial role in our understanding of the universe and its evolution. It helps explain the observed differences in the passage of time and can provide insights into the distribution of dark matter and its effects on the structure of the universe.

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