On relativistic generalization of gravitational force (Q937050)

This is mostly a conceptual paper in which the author revisites the compatibility problem of special relativity and the gravitational force, and studies the role of proper mass in special relativistic dynamics of point particles. According to the author, the commonly used concept of proper mass constancy is neither required in the physical foundations of the theory nor it is justified by observations. In this special relativistic methodology of variable proper mass, the equations of particle motion in the covariant form are derived and their exact solutions are obtained. Predictions under weak-field conditions are found to be similar to those in conventional theories. Moreover, new predictions are made concerning gravitational properties of particles under strong-field conditions. One of the new results is the elimination of conventional \(1/r\) divergence, which is known to be not removable in Schwarzschild gravitomechanics. As for photon motion, it is shown that it can be treated in a relativistic model in which the gravitational field acts on the photon as an optically active medium. In other words, it is the gravitational refraction rather then the force attraction that causes the bending of light.