3 ms·
> Yes, two bodies create a gravitational wave that affects other bodies - but I don't see how those variations represent work - and they aren't observable on th
by fmihaila 10y ago
> Yes, two bodies create a gravitational wave that affects other bodies - but I don't see how those variations represent work - and they aren't observable on the two bodies themselves, so one wouldn't expect any effect upon those two bodies
The lost energy results in orbital decay, eventually leading to the two bodies colliding. The page I linked to explains it in more detail.
- Nomentatus 10y agoAsserts it, yes - but my last sentence still applies. We don't have a fine-grained understanding of gravity; we'd need it for such a deduction. As it happens, I don't think we've ruled out that gravity itself - not just waves - slowly decays orbits. I rather expect this to be so, in fact, but on the basis of an eccentric theory of gravity.