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zd1899
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Can they exist ?? Like Magnetic Field lines and Electric Field lines
whybother said:I think you might be confused by what "exists" means in this context. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_line" are often physically significant, they are still just mathematical tools. In that sense, none of them "exist". But the gravitational field isn't any different, in terms of 'having' field lines, from the EM field, or any vector field, really.
zd1899 said:Like an Electric field connects one point to the charge to the other..in that context , would a Grav. field line connect any two centre's of gravity?
Also it will always act radially inwards for a particle , so is the geometry similar to other Field lines?
A gravitational field line is an imaginary line that represents the direction and strength of the gravitational force at different points in space. It is a visual representation of the gravitational field surrounding an object.
Gravitational field lines are drawn by placing a test mass at different points in space and observing the direction of the force it experiences due to the gravitational field of an object. The direction of the force is then represented by drawing a line tangent to the test mass at that point.
The spacing and density of gravitational field lines indicate the strength of the gravitational field. Closer spacing and higher density of lines represent a stronger gravitational field, while wider spacing and lower density of lines represent a weaker gravitational field.
The shape of gravitational field lines is significant as it represents the curvature of space caused by the presence of a massive object. The more curved the lines are, the stronger the gravitational field is.
No, gravitational field lines never intersect. This is because the direction of the gravitational force can only have one value at a given point in space. If field lines were to intersect, it would imply that the force is acting in two different directions at the same point, which is not possible.