Does asymptotic simplicity allow for radiation near spatial infinity? (Q852119)

The author extends the results of one of his previous papers. A representation of spatial infinity based on the properties of conformal geodesics is used to obtain asymptotic expansions of the gravitational field near the region where null infinity touches spatial infinity. These expansions show that generic time symmetric initial data with an analytic conformal metric at infinity will give rise to developments with a certain type of logarithmic singularities at the points where null infinity and spatial infinity meet. These logarithmic singularities produce a nonsmooth null infinity. The sources of the logarithmic singularities are traced back down to the initial data responsible for the non-regular behaviour of the solutions are not present, then the initial data is static to a third order. On the basis of these results it is conjectured that the only time symmetric data sets with developments having a smooth null infinity are those which are static in the neighborhood of infinity. This conjecture generalizes a previous conjecture regarding time symmetric, conformally flat data. The relation of these conjectures to Penrose's proposal for the description of the asymptotic gravitational field of isolated bodies is discussed. The asymptotic simplicity does seem to exclude gravitational radiation near spatial infinity.