5 research outputs found
Unwrapping Closed Timelike Curves
Closed timelike curves (CTCs) appear in many solutions of the Einstein
equation, even with reasonable matter sources. These solutions appear to
violate causality and so are considered problematic. Since CTCs reflect the
global properties of a spacetime, one can attempt to change its topology,
without changing its geometry, in such a way that the former CTCs are no longer
closed in the new spacetime. This procedure is informally known as unwrapping.
However, changes in global identifications tend to lead to local effects, and
unwrapping is no exception, as it introduces a special kind of singularity,
called quasi-regular. This "unwrapping" singularity is similar to the string
singularities. We give two examples of unwrapping of essentially 2+1
dimensional spacetimes with CTCs, the Gott spacetime and the Godel universe. We
show that the unwrapped Gott spacetime, while singular, is at least devoid of
CTCs. In contrast, the unwrapped Godel spacetime still contains CTCs through
every point. A "multiple unwrapping" procedure is devised to remove the
remaining circular CTCs. We conclude that, based on the two spacetimes we
investigated, CTCs appearing in the solutions of the Einstein equation are not
simply a mathematical artifact of coordinate identifications, but are indeed a
necessary consequence of General Relativity, provided only that we demand these
solutions do not possess naked quasi-regular singularities.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figure
Local Void vs Dark Energy: Confrontation with WMAP and Type Ia Supernovae
It is now a known fact that if we happen to be living in the middle of a
large underdense region, then we will observe an "apparent acceleration", even
when any form of dark energy is absent. In this paper, we present a "Minimal
Void" scenario, i.e. a "void" with minimal underdensity contrast (of about
-0.4) and radius (~ 200-250 Mpc/h) that can, not only explain the supernovae
data, but also be consistent with the 3-yr WMAP data. We also discuss
consistency of our model with various other measurements such as Big Bang
Nucleosynthesis, Baryon Acoustic Oscillations and local measurements of the
Hubble parameter, and also point out possible observable signatures.Comment: Minor numerical errors and typos corrected, references adde
Dark energy as a mirage
Motivated by the observed cosmic matter distribution, we present the
following conjecture: due to the formation of voids and opaque structures, the
average matter density on the path of the light from the well-observed objects
changes from Omega_M ~ 1 in the homogeneous early universe to Omega_M ~ 0 in
the clumpy late universe, so that the average expansion rate increases along
our line of sight from EdS expansion Ht ~ 2/3 at high redshifts to free
expansion Ht ~ 1 at low redshifts. To calculate the modified observable
distance-redshift relations, we introduce a generalized Dyer-Roeder method that
allows for two crucial physical properties of the universe: inhomogeneities in
the expansion rate and the growth of the nonlinear structures. By treating the
transition redshift to the void-dominated era as a free parameter, we find a
phenomenological fit to the observations from the CMB anisotropy, the position
of the baryon oscillation peak, the magnitude-redshift relations of type Ia
supernovae, the local Hubble flow and the nucleosynthesis, resulting in a
concordant model of the universe with 90% dark matter, 10% baryons, no dark
energy, 15 Gyr as the age of the universe and a natural value for the
transition redshift z_0=0.35. Unlike a large local void, the model respects the
cosmological principle, further offering an explanation for the late onset of
the perceived acceleration as a consequence of the forming nonlinear
structures. Additional tests, such as quantitative predictions for angular
deviations due to an anisotropic void distribution and a theoretical derivation
of the model, can vindicate or falsify the interpretation that light
propagation in voids is responsible for the perceived acceleration.Comment: 33 pages, 2 figs; v2: minor clarifications, results unchanged; v3:
matches the version published in General Relativity and Gravitatio