Classical analogue of an interstellar travel through a hydrodynamic wormhole

L.-P. Euvé and G. Rousseaux
Phys. Rev. D 96, 064042 – Published 25 September 2017

Abstract

The classical theory of space-time, namely general relativity, suggests but does not demonstrate the existence of so-called wormholes allowing for interstellar journeys. Alternative proposals such as quantum gravity theories are developed nowadays to allow for wormhole travels by assuming hypothetical trans-Planckian effects at tiny scales. Here we show experimentally that analogue traversable and bidirectional wormholes exist in hydrodynamics following a suggestion by Wheeler. Using a water channel, we sent free surface waves on a countercurrent in an analogue gravity setup aiming at showing that hydrodynamic wormhole travels are controlled by a cascade of dispersive scales including surface tension effects: the capillary wavelength plays the role of a Planckian scale below which long gravity waves are transformed into short capillary waves that are able to move at speeds higher than the “flow” of space-time. Whereas our results do not apply to putative astrophysical wormholes per se, we anticipate that they will trigger new ideas to explore quantum gravity physics.

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  • Received 18 July 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.96.064042

© 2017 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Fluid DynamicsGravitation, Cosmology & AstrophysicsInterdisciplinary Physics

Authors & Affiliations

L.-P. Euvé and G. Rousseaux

  • Institut Pprime, UPR 3346, CNRS-Université de Poitiers-ISAE ENSMA, 11 Boulevard Marie et Pierre Curie-Téléport 2, B.P. 30179, 86962 Futuroscope Cedex, France

See Also

Analog wormholes and black hole laser effects in hydrodynamics

Cédric Peloquin, Léo-Paul Euvé, Thomas Philbin, and Germain Rousseaux
Phys. Rev. D 93, 084032 (2016)

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Issue

Vol. 96, Iss. 6 — 15 September 2017

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