Summary:
• This paper's fundamental theory is that gravitation is an electromagnetic phenomenon, not an inherent property of mass. Planetary and satellite motions are governed by electric attraction, repulsion, and electromagnetic circumduction. The "falling" of objects in the terrestrial atmosphere is not comparable to the moon's "falling" revolution; the former is proposed as a dipole attraction in an electric field, while the latter is the circumduction of a charged body in a magnetic field. The Newtonian concept of inertial motion from a primary push is deemed fallacious.
• The theory of gravitation is asserted to be incompatible with a wide array of terrestrial phenomena. These include: the thorough mixing of atmospheric gases (like nitrogen and oxygen) despite great differences in specific weight; the presence of heavy ozone in the upper atmosphere but not the lower; the suspension of billions of tons of water in clouds, defying gravity; and the unexplained semidiurnal variations in barometric pressure, which peak at 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.
• Gravitation also allegedly fails to account for geophysical and astronomical observations. It cannot explain the lack of gravitational pull from massive mountains like the Himalayas (which led to the contradictory hypothesis of isostasy), nor why gravity is stronger over deep oceans than continents. It also fails to explain the sun's spherical shape despite its rapid rotation, the anomalous motions (perihelia) of Mercury and Mars, the "enigmatic" fluctuations in the lunar mean motion, or the fact that comets' tails are actively repelled by the sun.
• The proposed electromagnetic model posits that the sun, planets, and satellites are charged bodies. The sun is a powerful electromagnet (its field is claimed to be stronger than Hale measured) whose lines of force extend throughout the solar system. Planets, as charged bodies, revolve via circumduction at right angles to this field. A planet's own rotation creates its magnetic field, which in turn governs its satellites; this explains why non-rotating planets lack moons. This EM theory claims to explain perturbations, retrograde satellite motion, Mercury's acceleration (due to increasing charge), the electrical nature of meteors, and the influence of the charged ionosphere on barometric pressure and radio reception.
Key Ideas:
• Gravitation is an electromagnetic phenomenon.
• Electric attraction, repulsion, and electromagnetic circumduction govern the solar system.
• The "falling" of an object on Earth (dipole attraction) is a different phenomenon than the moon's revolution (magnetic circumduction).
• Inertia is the passive, repelling electrical charge property of an atom, which is equal to its active, attracting charge.
• The Newtonian theory of gravitation is incompatible with numerous phenomena (e.g., atmospheric gas mixing, cloud suspension, barometric variations).
• Gravitation fails to explain the lack of pull from mountains (Himalayas) and the spherical shape of the fast-rotating sun.
• Gravitational theory is flawed by its requirements for instantaneous action, action in abstentia (at a distance), and immutability.
• The theory fails to account for astronomical anomalies, including comet tail repulsion, meteor deflections, and anomalies in the motions of Mercury, Venus, and the moon.
• The sun is a powerful, rotating electromagnet whose field governs the solar system.
• Planets revolve in the sun's magnetic field; satellites revolve in their primary's magnetic field.
• Non-rotating planets have no satellites because they do not produce magnetic fields.
• Perturbations are electromagnetic interactions; the sun's field is the "regulating force" that restores orbits.
• Mercury's acceleration is the result of an increasing electrical charge.
• Terrestrial phenomena like cyclones, semidiurnal pressure changes, and meteor deflections are electromagnetic effects of the ionosphere.
Unique Events:
• Atmospheric gases remain mixed, defying specific gravity.
• Ozone, heavier than oxygen, is found in the upper, not lower, atmosphere.
• Water droplets (clouds) are suspended miles above the ground, defying gravity.
• Barometric pressure shows unexplained semidiurnal variations (10 a.m./p.m. maxima, 4 a.m./p.m. minima).
• The troposphere is highest (18 km) at the equator, where pressure is lowest.
• Laplace's gravity calculation for the atmosphere's height (21,000 miles) conflicts with the pressure-based calculation (17 miles).
• The rotation of anticyclones (clockwise in N. hemisphere) is unexplained by mechanistic principles.
• The unequal land mass of the northern hemisphere does not affect the earth's equilibrium.
• The Himalaya mountains fail to exert the expected gravitational pull on a plumb line (per J.H. Pratt).
• Gravitational pull is observed to be stronger over deep oceans than over continents.
• The sun's atmospheric pressure is vastly lower (0.005 of Earth's) than its gravitational mass would imply.
• The fast-rotating, gaseous sun is spherical, not flattened (ellipsoidal).
• Perturbations of Jupiter and Saturn showed an 18 percent difference between 1898-99 and 1916-17.
• The perihelion anomalies of Venus and Mars are not accounted for by Einstein’s formulas.
• S. Newcomb identified "enigmatic" fluctuations in the lunar mean motion.
• Radio reception is "nearly doubled" when the moon is "underneath" the observer.
• Comets' tails are repelled by the sun, which J. Herschel called a "defiance of the law of gravitation."
• The comet Encke's angular velocity is not in accord with gravitational computations.
• Meteors entering the atmosphere are violently displaced east and some "ricochet" back into space.
• Newton's tide-based calculation of the moon's mass (1/40 Earth's) is incorrect (modern 1/81).
• The discovery of Neptune by Adams and Leverrier was based on "very erroneously" calculated distances.
• An experiment showed a charged piece of hard rubber's weight increased by over ten milligrams.
• G.E. Hale's measurement of the sun's magnetic field (50 gausses) is questioned as too weak.
• One of Mars's satellites revolves with an angular speed greater than the planet's rotation.
Keywords & Definitions:
• Circumduction – The author's term for the revolution of a charged body (like a planet) moving at right angles within a magnetic field.
• Worlds In Collision – A work of research by the author (Velikovsky) being prepared for publication, detailing historical cosmic upheavals.
• Troposphere – The lower layer of the atmosphere; noted as being highest at the equator, where pressure is lowest.
• Semidiurnal variations – Twice-daily changes in barometric pressure, with maxima at 10 a.m./p.m. and minima at 4 a.m./p.m., which the text claims are unexplained by gravity or heat.
• Isostasy – The hypothesis that the earth's crust floats on a fluid magma, used to explain the lack of gravitational pull from mountains; the text claims this contradicts geophysical data showing a rigid earth.
• Harmonic Law of Kepler – Views planetary movements as depending only on their distance from the sun.
• S. Newcomb – Astronomer who studied and found "enigmatic" unexplained fluctuations in the lunar mean motion.
• J. Herschel – Astronomer quoted as stating that comets' tails defy the law of gravitation.
• Comet Encke – A comet whose change in angular velocity is not in accord with gravitational theory.
• Ionosphere – The electrified upper layers of the atmosphere; the text claims it exerts electromagnetic effects on meteors, radio waves, barometric pressure, and clouds.
• In abstentia – "In absence"; used to describe the theoretical difficulty of gravity acting where matter is not, through no physical agent.
• General Scholium – An addendum to Newton's Principia where he admits mechanical causes alone are insufficient and invokes Providence for the initial motion of planets.
• Adams and Leverrier – Astronomers credited with discovering Neptune; the text claims their calculations were erroneous and not a proof of gravitation.
• Dipole attraction – The proposed mechanism for attraction between neutral atoms and for objects falling to Earth; atoms are theorized to align as electric dipoles in the earth's electric field.
• Zeeman effect – The splitting of spectral lines in a magnetic field; used by G.E. Hale to detect the sun's magnetic field.
• G.E. Hale – Astronomer who detected the sun's general magnetic field, but whose measurement (50 gausses) the author claims is an incorrect, low approximation.