A 16-year study of a unique double pulsar system, PSR J0737-3039A/B, has confirmed Einstein's theory of general relativity with unprecedented precision, according to research published in the journal Physical Review X on December 13, 2021. The system, located about 2,400 light-years away, consists of two pulsars orbiting each other, providing a natural laboratory for testing gravity.
The study, led by researchers from the University of British Columbia and the University of East Anglia, measured the orbital decay of the pulsars, which matches Einstein's predictions to within 99.99%. This confirms that gravitational waves, as predicted by Einstein, carry away energy from the system, causing the orbits to shrink.
While the test supports general relativity, it also rules out some alternative theories of gravity, such as those involving scalar-tensor modifications. The findings do not directly test Newton's theory, which is a classical approximation of gravity, but they reinforce the framework of modern physics.
The research team used the Parkes Observatory in Australia and the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to collect data over 16 years. The precision of the test is equivalent to measuring the distance to the Moon to within a few centimeters.
