Field distortions propagate at the speed of light right? Can't measure for gravity, what about Elec/Mag Field?

Question

Everyone loves to talk about gravitational waves, but it's just too weak of a force and too tied up with our sense of space-time to really be measured...

So has anyone really done measurements on the propagation of large-scale changes of a straight electric/magnetic field?

In my sillyness I imagine some scientist in the pacific ocean turning some massively strong electromagnet on and off @ a predetermined frequency and some other scientist sitting in the atlantic ocean with some incredibly delicate and sensitive field indicator expecting to measure disturbances at the predetermined frequency by some time offset that hopefully makes sense given all that we know about field interaction and relativity.

Tried to find information on this through normal noob-y means (wiki, google) and failed so I ask here.

Answer 1

Ever hear of "radio"? How about "cell phones", "television", "satellites", etc.

All of these communicate through the principle of electromagnetic "disturbances". These are well-known and they travel at the speed of light, because that's what they are.

The light that we see from the Sun is an electromagnetic disturbance. It just happens to be at the frequency detectable by our visual receptors.

Answer 2

Changes in electric and/or magnetic fields actually produce electromagnetic waves. That is why, for example, if somebody nearby runs an electric motor, the rapid switches in electric & magnetic fields can actually be picked up as static on an AM radio. Since all e/m waves travel at the speed of light, this is pretty good evidence.

Answer 3

i'm no physicist, so i will purely provide you a lay guy's view from what i examine over the years. actuality: It has long been in many cases happening that gravitational forces curiously act at as quickly as over the completed universe. it takes approx 8 minutes for the mild from the sunlight to realize earth yet we experience the gravitational consequence just about quickly, for this reason it seems the fee of gravity is much better than the fee of sunshine. in actuality it particularly is been suggested that the fee of gravity and mild-weight have been an identical on the commencing up of the super bang however the fee of sunshine is slowing down by way of fact. this concept if actual it is going to alter the way we view physics: a million/ for starters c isn't consistent as einstein led us to have faith. 2/ maybe utilising this know-how shall we produce a propulsion gadget in line with gravitational concepts and commute the universe at warp speeds many cases that of c. 3/ in the distant destiny if mild is slowing down this universe is going to be an quite darkish place. as for the planets dropping there orbit by way of fact the sunlight quickly vanishing i ask your self might they initiate orbiting jupiter or our alledge binary brown dwarf celebrity. or might there be a residue consequence from the gravitons debris? taking in account that those are very stable theories (yet theories in no way the fewer) it might seem which you're terrific verify the positioning under for extra info.

Answer 4

One of the first predictions of Einstein's Theory of General Relativity was the existence of gravitational waves. Gravitational waves are predicted to propagate at the speed of light and represent a time-dependent distortion of the local space and time coordinates. Just as electromagnetic waves are produced by the acceleration of charge, gravitational waves are predicted to be produced by the acceleration of mass. Gravitational waves, however, differ from electromagnetic waves in a number of ways. While only a single charge is needed to produce electromagnetic waves, at least two masses are required to produce gravitational waves. The gravitational field is also very weak so that only catastrophic events are expected to produce detectable waves. Possible events include the collision of two astronomical objects and the collapse of a large astronomical object.

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) is a facility dedicated to the detection of cosmic gravitational waves and the harnessing of these waves for scientific research. It consists of two widely separated installations within the United States, operated in unison as a single observatory. When it reaches maturity, this observatory will be open for use by the national community and will become part of a planned worldwide network of gravitational-wave observatories.

Gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of space and time produced by violent events in the distant universe, for example by the collision of two black holes or by the cores of supernova explosions. Gravitational waves are emitted by accelerating masses much as electromagnetic waves are produced by accelerating charges. These ripples in the space-time fabric travel to Earth, bringing with them information about their violent origins and about the nature of gravity.

Albert Einstein predicted the existence of these gravitational waves in 1916 in his general theory of relativity, but only since the 1990s has technology become powerful enough to permit detecting them and harnessing them for science. Although they have not yet been detected directly, the influence of gravitational waves on a binary pulsar (two neutron stars orbiting each other) has been measured accurately and is in good agreement with the predictions. Scientists therefore have great confidence that gravitational waves exist. Joseph Taylor and Russel Hulse were awarded the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics for their discovery of this binary pulsar.

Answer 5

Its time, I think, for you to set up a revolutionary experiment