Why do we Still Believe in Newton's Law ? Facts, Myths and Methods in Gravitational Physics

Abstract

An overview of the experimental and observational status in gravitational physics is given, both for the known tests of general relativity and Newtonian gravity, but also for the increasing number of results where these theories run into problems, such as for dark matter, dark energy, and the Pioneer and flyby anomalies. It is argued that (1) scientific theories should be tested (2) current theories of gravity are poorly tested in the weak-acceleration regime (3) the measurements suggest that the anomalous phenomena have a common origin (4) it is useful to consider the present situation under a historical perspective and (5) it could well be that we still do not understand gravity. Proposals for improving the current use of scientific methods are given. `We do not know anything - this is the first. Therefore, we should be very modest - this is the second. Not to claim that we do know when we do not - this is the third. That's the kind of attitude I'd like to popularize. There is little hope for success.' (Karl Popper)

38 pages LaTeX, 2 figures. v8: new references and citations added

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Cited by in corpus (6)

• A Look at the Abandoned Contributions to Cosmology of Dirac, Sciama and Dicke
• Simulation of the flyby anomaly by means of an empirical asymmetric gravitational field with definite spatial orientation
• Test for consistence of a flyby anomaly simulation with the observed Doppler residuals for the Messenger flybys of Mercury
• A Quick and Dirty Approach to Verify the Pioneer Anomaly
• The VSL Discussion: What Does Variable Speed of Light Mean and Should we be Allowed to Think About ?
• Immanuel Kant on Supersymmetry: A Practical Evaluation