1,651 research outputs found
The Pioneer anomaly and the holographic scenario
In this paper we discuss the recently obtained relation between the
Verlinde's holographic model and the first phenomenological Modified Newtonian
dynamics. This gives also a promising possible explanation to the Pioneer
anomaly.Comment: 5 pages, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc
Dark matter and non-Newtonian gravity from General Relativity coupled to a fluid of strings
An exact solution of Einstein's field equations for a point mass surrounded
by a static, spherically symmetric fluid of strings is presented. The solution
is singular at the origin. Near the string cloud limit there is a
correction to Newton's force law. It is noted that at large distances and small
accelerations, this law coincides with the phenomenological force law invented
by Milgrom in order to explain the flat rotation curves of galaxies without
introducing dark matter. When interpreted in the context of a cosmological
model with a string fluid, the new solution naturally explains why the critical
acceleration of Milgrom is of the same order of magnitude as the Hubble
parameter.Comment: 12 pages, REVTeX, no figure
Tidal dwarf galaxies as a test of fundamental physics
Within the cold dark matter (CDM) framework tidal dwarf galaxies (TDGs)
cannot contain dark matter, so the recent results by Bournaud et al. (2007)
that 3 rotating TDGs do show significant evidence for being dark matter
dominated is inconsistent with the current concordance cosmological theory
unless yet another dark matter component is postulated. We confirm that the TDG
rotation curves are consistent with Newtonian dynamics only if either an
additional dark matter component is postulated, or if all 3 TDGs happen to be
viewed nearly edge-on, which is unlikely given the geometry of the tidal
debris. We also find that the observed rotation curves are very naturally
explained without any free parameters within the modified Newtonian dynamics
(MOND) framework if inclinations are adopted as derived by Bournaud et al. We
explore different inclination angles and two different assumptions about the
external field effect. The results do not change significantly, and we conclude
therefore that Newtonian dynamics has severe problems while MOND does
exceedingly well in explaining the observed rotation curves of the 3 TDGs
studied by Bournaud et al.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A Letters, 5 pages, 3 figure
On the Possibility of Quantum Gravity Effects at Astrophysical Scales
The nonperturbative renormalization group flow of Quantum Einstein Gravity
(QEG) is reviewed. It is argued that at large distances there could be strong
renormalization effects, including a scale dependence of Newton's constant,
which mimic the presence of dark matter at galactic and cosmological scales.Comment: LaTeX, 18 pages, 4 figures. Invited contribution to the Int. J. Mod.
Phys. D special issue on dark matter and dark energ
Exact gravitational lensing and rotation curve
Based on the geodesic equation in a static spherically symmetric metric we
discuss the rotation curve and gravitational lensing. The rotation curve
determines one function in the metric without assuming Einstein's equations.
Then lensing is considered in the weak field approximation of general
relativity. From the null geodesics we derive the lensing equation and
corrections to it.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figur
The Study of the Pioneer Anomaly: New Data and Objectives for New Investigation
Radiometric tracking data from Pioneer 10 and 11 spacecraft has consistently
indicated the presence of a small, anomalous, Doppler frequency drift,
uniformly changing with a rate of ~6 x 10^{-9} Hz/s; the drift can be
interpreted as a constant sunward acceleration of each particular spacecraft of
a_P = (8.74 \pm 1.33) x 10^{-10} m/s^2. This signal is known as the Pioneer
anomaly; the nature of this anomaly remains unexplained. We discuss the efforts
to retrieve the entire data sets of the Pioneer 10/11 radiometric Doppler data.
We also report on the recently recovered telemetry files that may be used to
reconstruct the engineering history of both spacecraft using original project
documentation and newly developed software tools. We discuss possible ways to
further investigate the discovered effect using these telemetry files in
conjunction with the analysis of the much extended Doppler data. We present the
main objectives of new upcoming study of the Pioneer anomaly, namely i)
analysis of the early data that could yield the direction of the anomaly, ii)
analysis of planetary encounters, that should tell more about the onset of the
anomaly, iii) analysis of the entire dataset, to better determine the anomaly's
temporal behavior, iv) comparative analysis of individual anomalous
accelerations for the two Pioneers, v) the detailed study of on-board
systematics, and vi) development of a thermal-electric-dynamical model using
on-board telemetry. The outlined strategy may allow for a higher accuracy
solution for a_P and, possibly, will lead to an unambiguous determination of
the origin of the Pioneer anomaly.Comment: 43 pages, 40 figures, 3 tables, minor changes before publicatio
Evolution of spiral galaxies in modified gravity: II- Gas dynamics
The stability of spiral galaxies is compared in modified Newtonian Dynamics
(MOND) and Newtonian dynamics with dark matter (DM). We extend our previous
simulations that involved pure stellar discs without gas, to deal with the
effects of gas dissipation and star formation. We also vary the interpolating
function between the MOND and Newtonian regime. Bar formation is compared in
both dynamics, from initial conditions identical in visible component. One
first result is that the MOND galaxy evolution is not affected by the choice of
the mu-function, it develops bars with the same frequency and strength. The
choice of the mu-function significantly changes the equivalent DM models, in
changing the dark matter to visible mass ratio and, therefore, changing the
stability. The introduction of gas shortens the timescale for bar formation in
the DM model, but is not significantly shortened in the MOND model. As a
consequence, with gas, the MOND and DM bar frequency histograms are now more
similar than without gas. The thickening of the plane occurs through vertical
resonance with the bar and peanut formation, and even more quickly with gas.
Since the mass gets more concentrated with gas, the radius of the peanut is
smaller, and the appearance of the pseudo-bulge is more boxy. The bar strength
difference is moderated by saturation, and feedback effects, like the bar
weakening or destruction by gas inflow due to gravity torques. Averaged over a
series of models representing the Hubble sequence, the MOND models have still
more bars, and stronger bars, than the equivalent DM models, better fitting the
observations. Gas inflows driven by bars produce accumulations at Lindblad
resonances, and MOND models can reproduce observed morphologies quite well, as
was found before in the Newtonian dynamics.Comment: 9 pages, 11 figures, accepted in A&
Recommended from our members
The probability of sale and price premiums in withdrawn auctioned properties
This paper examines the impact of the auction process of residential properties that whilst unsuccessful at auction sold subsequently. The empirical analysis considers both the probability of sale and the premium of the subsequent sale price over the guide price, reserve and opening bid. The findings highlight that the final achieved sale price is influenced by key price variables revealed both prior to and during the auction itself. Factors such as auction participation, the number of individual bidders and the number of bids are significant in a number of the alternative specifications
On the galactic rotation curves problem within an axisymmetric approach
In U. Nucamendi et al. Phys. Rev. D63 (2001) 125016 and K. Lake, Phys. Rev.
Lett. 92 (2004) 051101 it has been shown that galactic potentials can be
kinematically linked to the observed red/blue shifts of the corresponding
galactic rotation curves under a minimal set of assumptions: the emitted
photons come from stable timelike circular geodesic orbits of stars in a static
spherically symmetric gravitational field, and propagate to us along null
geodesics. It is remarkable that this relation can be established without
appealing at all to a concrete theory of gravitational interaction. Here we
generalize this kinematical spherically symmetric approach to the galactic
rotation curves problem to the stationary axisymmetric realm since this is
precisely the symmetry that spiral galaxies possess. Thus, by making use of the
most general stationary axisymmetric metric, we also consider stable circular
orbits of stars that emit signals which travel to a distant observer along null
geodesics and express the galactic red/blue shifts in terms of three arbitrary
metric functions, clarifying the contribution of the rotation as well as the
dragging of the gravitational field. This stationary axisymmetric approach
distinguishes between red and blue shifts emitted by circularly orbiting
receding and approaching stars, respectively, even when they are considered
with respect to the center of a spiral galaxy, indicating the need of precise
measurements in order to confront predictions with observations. We also point
out the difficulties one encounters in the attempt of determining the metric
functions from observations and list some possible strategies to overcome them.Comment: 7 pages in latex (MNRAS format), no figures, discussion and
references adde
Galactic kinematics with modified Newtonian dynamics
We look for observational signatures that could discriminate between
Newtonian and modified Newtonian (MOND) dynamics in the Milky Way, in view of
the advent of large astrometric and spectroscopic surveys. Indeed, a typical
signature of MOND is an apparent disk of "phantom" dark matter, which is
uniquely correlated with the visible disk-density distribution. Due to this
phantom dark disk, Newtonian models with a spherical halo have different
signatures from MOND models close to the Galactic plane. The models can thus be
differentiated by measuring dynamically (within Newtonian dynamics) the disk
surface density at the solar radius, the radial mass gradient within the disk,
or the velocity ellipsoid tilt angle above the Galactic plane. Using the most
realistic possible baryonic mass model for the Milky Way, we predict that, if
MOND applies, the local surface density measured by a Newtonist will be
approximately 78 Msun/pc2 within 1.1 kpc of the Galactic plane, the dynamically
measured disk scale-length will be enhanced by a factor of 1.25 with respect to
the visible disk scale-length, and the local vertical tilt of the velocity
ellipsoid at 1 kpc above the plane will be approximately 6 degrees. None of
these tests can be conclusive for the present-day accuracy of Milky Way data,
but they will be of prime interest with the advent of large surveys such as
GAIA.Comment: 5 page
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