Cosmic Redshift Elegantly Explained by Minkowski Space-Time and General Relativity

An elegant explanation for the phenomenon of cosmic redshift is presented that relies only on the concept of energy conservation and basic physics. Central to this explanation are two questions: 1) where and when can information about an event be known; and 2) can asymmetries in information arise that affect our observations?

General Relativity demands conservation of energy in all its myriad forms. The stress-energy tensor defines an equivalence between mass, temperature, pressure and motion which is exemplified by Einstein’s equation, E=mc2. The interchangeability of energy and mass implies that gravitational attraction between masses is equivalent to gravitational attraction between the energy of those masses. By extension, gravitational attraction exists between photons because each has energy (e.g., energy of hν).

Two approaching photons will be unaware of each other because they are in each other’sfuture-light-cone. Each photon will have its own sense of gravity and energy in its environ –and therefore unaware of the energy in the other approaching photon (as well as the recoilenergy from that photon's emitting atom). However, once the photons pass each other andenter each other's past-light-cones, they will become aware of each other, becomegravitationally attracted to the other's energy and exchange kinetic energy for gravitationalpotential energy. This sudden appearance of energy in each other past-light-cones createsan asymmetry that underlies the observation known as cosmic redshift.