IAS: Anti-gravity Anti-gravity is an idea of creating a place | Science & Technology

IAS:
Anti-gravity

Anti-gravity is an idea of creating a place or object that is free from the force of gravity. It does not refer to the lack of weight under gravity experienced in free fall or orbit, or to balancing the force of gravity with some other force, such as electromagnetism or aerodynamic lift. Anti-gravity is a recurring concept in science fiction, particularly in the context of spacecraft propulsion. Examples are the gravity blocking substance "Cavorite" in H. G. Wells' The First Men in the Moon and the Spindizzy machines in James Blish'sCities in Flight.

In Newton's law of universal gravitation, gravity was an external force transmitted by unknown means. In the 20th century, Newton's model was replaced by general relativity where gravity is not a force but the result of the geometry of spacetime. Under general relativity, anti-gravity is impossible except under contrived circumstances.[1][2][3]Quantum physicists have postulated the existence of gravitons, a set of masslesselementary particles that transmit the force, and the possibility of creating or destroying these is unclear.

"Anti-gravity" is often used colloquially to refer to devices that look as if they reverse gravity even though they operate through other means, such as lifters, which fly in the air by moving air with electromagnetic fields.