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General Relativity - ASTR378

This unit presents Einstein's theory of general relativity. The unit begins with a review of the ideas of geometry, and the presentation of special relativity from a geometric perspective, gravity as geometry, and the equivalence principle. Curved spacetime, metrics, geodesics, and Schwarzschild geometry, are then introduced. Only then is tensor analysis and the full description of spacetime curvature developed and used in the derivation of Einstein's field equations. Applications to classical tests of relativity, the Schwarzschild metric, black holes, and gravitational waves are considered.

Credit Points: 3
When Offered:

S2 Day - Session 2, North Ryde, Day

Staff Contact(s): Professor Mark Wardle
Prerequisites:

PHYS301 Prerequisite Information

Corequisites:

NCCW(s): PHYS378
Unit Designation(s):

Science

Unit Type:
Assessed As: Graded
Offered By:

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Faculty of Science and Engineering

Course structures, including unit offerings, are subject to change.
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