A comprehensive review of the testing and research conducted on Einstein's theory of general relativity.

The 2015 centenary of the publication of Einstein's general theory of relativity, and the first detection of gravitational waves have focused renewed attention on the question of whether Einstein was right. This review of experimental gravity provides a detailed survey of the intensive testing of Einstein's theory of gravity, including tests in the emerging strong-field dynamical regime. It discusses the theoretical frameworks needed to analyze gravitational theories and interpret experiments. Completely revised and updated, this new edition features coverage of new alternative theories of gravity, a unified treatment of gravitational radiation, and the implications of the latest binary pulsar observations. It spans the earliest tests involving the Solar System to the latest tests using gravitational waves detected from merging black holes and neutron stars. It is a comprehensive reference for researchers and graduate students working in general relativity, cosmology, particle physics and astrophysics.

139 The L. S. U. Low Temperature Gravity Wave Experiment, W. O. Hamilton, T. P. Bernat, D. G. Blair, W. C. Oelfke 149 Optimal Detection of Signals through Linear Devices with Thermal Noise Sources and Application to the Munich Frascati Weber-Type Gravitational Wave Detectors, P. Kafka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161 Synchrotron Radiation and Astrophysics, A. A."

This most up-to-date, one-stop reference combines coverage of both theory and observational techniques, with introductory sections to bring all readers up to the same level. Written by outstanding researchers directly involved with the scientific program of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), the book begins with a brief review of general relativity before going on to describe the physics of gravitational waves and the astrophysical sources of gravitational radiation. Further sections cover gravitational wave detectors, data analysis, and the outlook of gravitational wave astronomy and astrophysics.

The aim of this book is to become a major reference text for gravitational-wave physics, covering in detail both the experimental and the theoretical aspects. The book brings the reader to the forefront of present-day research, and assumes no previous knowledge of gravitational-wave physics.

Gravitational Physics assesses the achievements of the field over the past decade in both theory and experiment, identifies the most promising opportunities for research in the next decade, and describes the resources necessary to realize those opportunities. A major theme running through the opportunities is the exploration of strong gravitational fields, such as those associated with black holes. The book, part of the ongoing decadal survey Physics in a New Era, examines topics such as gravitational waves and their detection, classical and quantum theory of strong gravitational fields, precision measurements, and astronomical observations relevant to the predictions of Einstein's theory of general relativity.

An up-to-date description of progress and current problems with the gravitational constant, both in terms of generalized gravitational theories and experiments either in the laboratory, using Casimir force measurements, or in space at solar system distances and in cosmological observations. Contributions cover different aspects of the state and prediction of unified theories of the physical interactions including gravitation as a cardinal link, the role of experimental gravitation and observational cosmology in discriminating between them, the problem of the precise measurement and stability of fundamental physical constants in space and time, and the gravitational constant in particular. Recent advances discussed include unified and scalar-tensor theories, theories in diverse dimensions and their observational windows, gravitational experiments in space, rotational and torsional effects in gravity, basic problems in cosmology, early universe as an arena for testing unified models, and big bang nucleosynthesis.