Message-Id: <v01540b02afa7a9599e07@[192.174.2.173]>
Date: Tue, 20 May 1997 11:18:06 -0800
To: pinhole@exploratorium.edu
From: pauld@exploratorium.edu (Paul Doherty)
Subject: re speed of gravity
Hi Steve
Gravity perturbations indeed travel at the speed of light. So if the sun
were suddenly yanked away the earth would continue in its orbit unperturbed
for 8 minutes.
Note that there is indirect evidence for the existence of gravity waves.
These waves propagate at the speed of light.
Maxwell discovered that electromagnetic waves travelled at the speed of
light and made the association that therefor light was electromagnetism.
Our current model is that gravity also propagates at the speed of light so
Maxwell made a rash but correct jump.
Paul Doherty