Professor to test Einstein
theory with new experiment
By Barney Haney
Staff
Writer
A new way of testing Einstein's biggest theory
has sprouted right here at Purdue.
James Longuski, a professor of astronomics, went
back to class after a friend of his in gravitivity school introduced
him to a book called "Einstein: Creator and Rebel."
The biography inspired Longuski.
He set out to further his fascination by enrolling
in a class taught by physics professor Ephraim Fischbach.
"I am an admirer of Fischbach. I had been to see
him speak and had also kept news clips that he was in," said Longuski.
Fischbach's PHYS 757, "Special and General Relativity,"
class was the setting for Longuski's breakthrough.
For his term paper in the class, Longuski came
up with a new way of testing Einstein's theory of general relativity.
Einstein's prediction, back in 1915, was that light
is bent as it passes around the sun.
Sir Arthur Eddington tested this theory and found
support for it in 1919 with an expedition of a solar eclipse. When the
sun was photographed, the deflection of light from the background stars
was as Einstein predicted.
Now Longuski, Fischbach and Daniel Scheeres, an
assistant professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan,
are putting Einstein up to a challenge again.
The three propose placing a spacecraft on a trajectory,
which would pass close to the sun.
Their experiment would test an aspect of Einstein's
theory that can not be measured by the light detection test.
"It would provide either a more precise verification
that Einstein is right, or could show that he is wrong," said Longuski.
Fischbach said, "It is very hard to come up with
a relevant, feasible test. Very few tests, maybe a handful, have made
a significant accomplishment."
In Fischbach's class the only objective was to
write a publishable paper. Not only did Longuski have his paper published
in one of the most respected physics journals, "Physical Review Letters,"
he also sparked the interest of physicists worldwide.
Longuski said he is trying to get the word out
that the test exists and to get the consensus of the scientific community
to try to get this tested.
"The whole thing has just been exhilarating. It's
been beyond my dreams," said Longuski. "This may be one of the greatest
things I have ever done, besides teaching my design class.''
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