Albert Einstein 55 - physicist Karl Schwarzschild Poem by Geeta Radhakrishna Menon

There were many brilliant scientists who recognised
Dr. Einstein's work on ‘Theory of Relativity'.
His work was keenly noted, followed and discussed
By eminent Physicists all over Europe.
It was during his stay in Berlin before and after
The wars, that his fame spread all over the world.
Many physicists began to apply Einstein's Theory
In their research work. One such Physicist was
Dr. Karl Schwarzschild from Germany.
He applied Einstein's new theory into Astrophysics.

Schwarzschild contemplated and worked
On an isolated blob of matter- Like a star!
An isolated star with no mass nearby,
Would have zero stress sensor.
He assumed too, things did not change
With time, nor any choice direction.
Schwarzschild derived the metric for spacetime
In the vicinity of a star. It came to be named as
‘Schwarzschild metric' in his honour and
The particular distance as ‘Schwarzschild radius'!

The innovation of ‘Schwarzschild metric' and radius',
Posed problems for the physicists and seemed quirky.
"If the curvature of the spacetime becomes infinite
At a particular radius, then, it is like walking down a slope,
But suddenly, if you step off the edge of a cliff-
Once you have gone too far, there is no way back."
Few years later, Physicist Roy Kerr found solutions
For a rotating, radiating ball of space.
This helped mathematicians to explain
The behaviour of rotating black holes!

The most commendable part of Einstein's Theory,
Is that he devised many experiments to prove his point.
If he did not carry out the experiment himself,
He urged other physicists and scientists to do it.
A classic example of Einstein's victory was the expedition
And experiment conducted by Arthur Eddington with his team
In West Africa in 1919, during total eclipse of the Sun.
The story of Einstein -Eddington experiments became a huge success,
Their books- ‘Space, Time & Gravitation', ‘The Mathematical Theory of Relativity' and ‘The Meaning of Relativity' became International best sellers!

A Biographical Poem