Gravity Lensing

Gravity Lensing

For a project I need to generate an animation of a gravity lens. The target group are not physics students but interested pupils of sec. schools (17 or 18 yo), ie all I need to show is the basic principle of gravity distorting 3D space.
Fluffing around for half of the day all I could come up with is the Bulge modifier (in this case it a Pinch modifier).
1 Start: No gravitational field > no lensing
2 Middle: Getting there
3 End: Galaxy / Black hole in the centre distorts space and thus bends the light (shown by white path) emitted from some far cosmic object and received by planet earth in the foreground

I have the nagging feeling that there is a much better way to show this (possibly a script I am dimly aware of but can´t remember, presumably because I am mentally stuck on a mediocre solution). Does anybody have a bright idea ?
Thank you
 

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Physics is a hobby of mine, nothing more dangerous than hobby level Physicist. :rolleyes:
Here's a simple illustration of a double false image created by high gravity "Lens" effect.

Green ball is the observation point, red cones are in the perceived locations, blue cone is the actual location.

 

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Here's something I whipped up.

The entire look is based on a NASA illustration:
http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/heic0814f/

I figured since NASA directed this image, the model should be accurate - I left all the Bulge & Bend Modifiers intact. Now you have it as a Cheetah file and can customize it as you wish. :smile:

Cheers.
 

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Last edited:
Thank you for the help.
Servus from Vienna
 

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:) Hi Helmut

What a fun observation!

I love the picture you attached of:
the Mother Cheetah and her cubs with your inference of the Mother Cheetah representing Dr Martin,
the cub that is front and center being Frank and the rest of the cubs representing
the rest of the community.

This might be fun to post on the Twitter page

Also:

Ah that someone would make a 3D object of a cheetah along with a tut on making it.

I’m sure there would be a lot of helpful tips and shortcuts involved.

Seems the process I use to try to model things is long and tedious.
Thanks to the Cheetah 3D community I have been slowly learning a better way to do it.

My Best Regards
Jeanny
 
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