Jayant Narlikar

Introduction

Indian astronomer Jayant Vishnu Narlikar is a retired professor at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA).

He and Sir Fred Hoyle developed the conformal gravity hypothesis, popularly known as the Hoyle-Narlikar theory. It combines Mach's principle and Albert Einstein's theory of relativity. According to this theory, a particle's inertial mass is a function of its own mass plus the masses of all other particles multiplied by a coupling constant that depends on the cosmic epoch.

His Early Life

Jayant Narlikar was born on July 19, 1938, in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, and was raised in Varanasi at his uncle's house. He comes from a family of mathematicians. His maternal uncle was the renowned statistician V. S. Huzurbazar. Narlikar's father, Vishnu Vasudev Narlikar, was a mathematician as well as a theoretical physicist who worked as a professor and the head of the department of mathematics at Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi. His mother, Sumati Narlikar, was a specialist in Sanskrit. Every morning, the uncle would write a math problem on a whiteboard and wouldn't erase it until his nephew Jayant had solved it.

Narlikar obtained his M.Sc. and Ph.D. from Banaras Hindu University before migrating to Cambridge to collaborate with Fred Hoyle on a research project at King's College. He received a lot of awards, medals, and scholarships for his astronomy studies. Mangala Narlikar, a mathematician, is his wife, and they have three daughters.

His Achievements and Rewards

Jayant Narlikar, a well-known astrophysicist, has received numerous honorary doctorates and awards on a national and international level. Narlikar is recognized throughout the world for the contributions he made to cosmology and for advancing theories that challenge the generally accepted Big Bang theory. Narlikar is known for conveying science with his books, articles, radio, and television shows in addition to scientific research. He is also well known for his science fiction novels in Marathi. The Sahitya Akademi, India's premier literary organization, selected his autobiography, "Chaar Nagaratle Majhe Vishwa," to earn its highest honor for drafting in a regional language (Marathi) in 2014.

Dr. Jayant Narlikar's Fictional Stories and Novels

1. Athenscha Plague Story In Antaralatale Bhasmasur
   The science fiction novel Athenscha Plague (The Plague in Athens), written by Dr. Jayant Narlikar approximately thirty years ago, gained popularity during the Corona pandemic. His short story collection "Antaralatale Bhasmasur" (Demons in the Space) suggested that a deadly virus would cause the human race to experience an existential crisis. According to the legend, the virus emerged from an asteroid and destroyed ancient Athens.
2. Vaman Parat Na Aala
   In a different book named "Vaman Parat Na Aala" (Vaman did not return), Narlikar makes an effort to demonstrate the effects of creating a super-intelligent robot. As artificial intelligence grows more common in society, Narlikar shows how he always prepared well ahead in this fictional scenario from the 1980s.
3. Big Bang Theory And Steady State Theory
   Most scientists now acknowledge that the universe was created by the explosion of an extremely dense, atom-sized object. The body exploded like a cracker, emitting material that later was responsible for the formation of stars, galaxies, and various other celestial objects. This is a physical theory known as the "Big Bang" theory.

However, Jayant Vishnu Narlikar does not believe this theory is currently well-supported. In truth, he used to have a strong belief in the oppositional "steady state" theory.

According to the steady state theory, the universe has not changed and will not change in the future, either. Stars, galaxies, and other objects cause consistent disturbance throughout the universe. Any voids left by the velocity of a galaxy or other objects are then filled with new matter.

In addition to his work on the "steady state" theory, Narlikar co-authored a revolutionary theory of gravitation when he was just 26 years old with his mentor, Fred Hoyle. After that, the theory was considered an accomplishment on the same level as Einstein's theory of relativity. In practical terms, Jayant Narlikar is designated "India's Albert Einstein."

What He Has Been Upto Now?

Jayant Narlikar returned home in 1972 and has been a professor of Astrophysics at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research since then. He is currently studying tachyons, particles that move faster than light, and "black holes," which are cosmic bodies with incredibly high gravity, together with his students. Even a tablespoon of a "black hole" weighs more than many tonnes, making it nearly impossible for even light to escape. According to Narlikar, a "black hole" has the capability of absorbing in tachyons and decreasing its own surface area. Therefore, he suggests that one technique to locate tachyons is to look for "black holes" that are diminishing in size.

Conclusion

In addition to his work in science fiction, Narlikar has put a lot of effort into making science accessible to everyone. More than 840,281 users have seen Jayant Narlikar's English Wikipedia page since its launch in 2007. His biography is available on Wikipedia in 30 different languages. Jayant Narlikar is the sixth most widely recognized physicist in India, the 369th most popular biography in India, and the 484th most popular physicist worldwide.