I am the author of the article I cited. Here is a copy of the MS:
AN ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATION OF THE COSMOLOGICAL REDSHIFT. Robert J Hannon 3949 Wilshire Court Sarasota FL 34238-2571 USA
11 March 1998.
[Published in PHYSICS ESSAYS, Vol. 11, No. 4, December 1998)
ABSTRACT: The nature and conventional explanation of the cosmological redshift are briefly reviewed. A simple alternative explanation is offered.
KEY WORDS AND PHRASES: cosmological redshift, relativistic Doppler shift, classical Doppler shift, electromagnetic radiation, permittivity and permeability of empty space.
I. INTRODUCTION.
A redshift is a uniform proportional reduction in the frequency of every line in a spectrum The Cosmological redshift (CR) is the observed redshift of the spectra of distant objects that are not gravitationally bound to our galaxy. It seems to increase with the distance of those objects from Earth. All such objects appear, if the conventional explanation of the CR is true, to be receding from us; the more distant, the faster.
The conventional wisdom attributes the CR to the Doppler effect, which arises from the expansion of the universe supposedly predicted by general relativity. The “relativistic” definition of redshift, Z, used by cosmologists, is:
Z=(1-vr/c)/(1-vr2/c2)1/2 (1)
Equation (1) says Z approaches infinity as vr, the velocity of recession of the source of light relative to Earth, approaches c, the velocity of light in empty space. vr is believed to increase linearly with distance. From the observational standpoint,
Z=(c/fo-c/fe)/(c/fe)
=(fe/fo)-1, (2)
where fe is emitted frequency and fo is observed frequency. The ratio fe/fo is what is measured. This is done by comparing the frequencies of known spectral lines from local sources with the frequencies of the same spectral lines in light from the distant source. vr is calculated using (1).
Is it possible for the expansion of the universe to cause the observed CR? In order for light from a distant source to be Doppler-shifted by the expansion of the universe, the metric of space (the length of a meter) and/or the metric of time (the duration of a second) must change as the universe expands. However, according to general relativity, any such change in the space and time metrics of the universe must be uniform, everywhere and everywhen. Neither light nor anything else can have metrics that differ from those of their current location in the universe. This means that, if the spectrum of a distant source is Doppler-shifted by expansion of the universe, the spectrum of a similar source here on Earth, or anywhere else, must undergo exactly the same Doppler shift. When that light arrives at Earth, its metrics must be those of our location. Therefore, if a Doppler shift due to the expansion of the universe exists, we cannot detect it.
But we do observe a redshift in the light from all very distant objects located far outside our galaxy. If a Doppler shift due to the expansion of the universe cannot be detected, we must find an explanation for that which is observed. The observed redshift is possible if the velocity of propagation of light decreases with the distance it must travel through “empty space”. This contradicts the commonly held belief that c, the velocity of propagation of light in empty space is a universal constant. It also appears to contradict the law of conservation of energy, as it is believed that light must lose energy if its frequency is decreased.
In the accepted theory of electromagnetic (EM) waves, D, the energy-density of any such wave in empty space, is
D=eoE2/2+moH2/2 (3)
or: 2D=eoE2+moH2,
and: eoE2=D=moH2 (4)
so: eoE2=moH2
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The following equation is missing in the published version:
eoE2/moH2=1
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where eo is the permittivity of empty space, mo is the permeability of empty space, E is the electric intensity of the wave, and H is the magnetic intensity of the wave. 2 The velocity of propagation, c, of an EM wave in empty space is defined by Maxwell’s equation 3, now written as
c=1/(eomo)1/2 (5)
and: c=fl (6)
where f is the frequency of a wave and l is its wavelength. Equation (5) tells us that if eo and/or mo vary, then c will vary. Equation (6) tells us that if c varies, then f and/or l will vary.
2. AN ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATION OF THE CR.
eo and mo are assumed to be properties of empty space, but there is no known reason why empty space should have such properties. It is possible that eo and mo are actually properties of EM energy, and that (4) may mean
eo=D/E2 (7)
and: mo=D/H2 (8)
so: eo mo=D2/(EH)2 (9)
If so,, c will depend on the vales of D, E, and H in the otherwise empty space through which EM radiation propagates.
The values of E and H at any point in otherwise empty space are the instantaneous vector sums of the electric and magnetic intensities, respectively, of all EM radiation of all frequencies, propagating in all directions, that exists at that point. D is the scalar sum of all the energy of all EM radiation that exists in a volume of space at any instant, regardless of its frequency or direction of propagation. The value of eo in any volume of empty space depends on the total amount of energy contained within that volume, and the total electric field intensity within that volume. Similarly the value of mo in that volume of empty space depends on the total amount of energy and the total magnetic field intensity. Therefore,
c=1/(eo mo)1/2=1/[D2/(EH)2]1/2=EH/D. (10)
D is a scalar quantity, while E and H are sums of many vectors. As the amount of EM radiation existing in a volume of space increases, it is therefore likely that D will increase faster than EH. Equation (1) says that c varies with D, the energy-density of radiation in the space through which EM radiation propagates.
Assume c is the local value of the speed of light and S is the average value of the speed of light over some distance R. HE, H, and D are the local values of electric intensity, magnetic intensity, and EM radiation energy-density, respectively, and E*, H*, and D* are their average values over distance R. Then
c=EH/D (11)
and: S=E*H*/D* (12)
so: S/c=(E*H*/D*)/(EH/D (13)
If E*H*=EH, then:
S/c=D/D*. (14)
What does observation tell us? A galaxy in Hydra, 3.96 billion LY away, has a redshift corresponding to vr=0.203c. So S/c=(1-0.203)/1=0.797=D/D*, and D*=1.255D. Thus the average energy-density of EM radiation along a light-path of 3.96 billion LY increased by 0.255D, or 0.0644D per billion LY. If we assume this rate of change is linear, the increase in D* over the distance to an object in Bootes, 2.50 billion LY away, is 0.161. Then D/D*=S/c=1/1.161=0.861. So, S/c =0.861, and it appears to be receding at vr=(c-S)=0.139c, which agrees with observation. 4
By the same logic, light from an object 15 billion LY away travels to us through an average energy-density D*=(1+0.966)D, so S=0.509c, and vr=0.491c.
Light from an object 1000 billion LY away *if we could see it) would seem to be receding at 0.985c. An object at 10,000 billion LY away would seem to be receding at 0.998c.
If this hypothesis is true, D*, the average energy-density of EM radiation in empty space, increases with distance, and the speed of light, S, varies as 1/D*. The illusory “velocity of recession”, vr, is actually (c-S), where c is the value of the speed of light in our locale. The variation of D*, and therefore of S, accounts for the CR, without restricting the size of the “observable” universe.
Is energy lost as the velocity of light changes? No. Each light wave contributes some of its energy to the increase of energy-density with distance along every light-path.
REFERENCES:
1. J. Silk, THE BIG BANG, WH Freeman and Co., New York, 1980, p 330.
2. P. Lorrain and D. Corson, ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS AND WAVES, 2nd Edition, WH Freeman and Co., New York, 1970, p. 464.
3. Ibid., p. 461.
4. See reference 1, p. 49.