PlutoPlot An application that draws images to see the effect of gravitational lensing
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einstein test effect

PlutoPlot Description

Einstein's General Theory of Relativity demonstrates that a large mass can deform spacetime and bend the path of light. So, a very massive object, such as a cluster of galaxies can act as a gravitational lens. When light passes through the cluster from an object lying behind it, the light is bent and focused to produce an image or images of the source. The image may be magnified, distorted, or multiplied by the lens, depending upon the position of the source with respect to the lensing mass. The characteristics of the gravitationally ensed image depend upon the alignment of the observer, the lens and the background object. If the alignment is perfect, the resulting image is an Einstein Ring. Using PlutoPlot you can draw images to see the gravitational lensing effect. You can easily test the effects of several parameters by changing them and redrawing the image.

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