The Quo Vadis Effect: A Classical Approach to Mercury's Perihelion Precession and Other Gravitational Phenomena

The perihelion precession of Mercury has long served as a key test of General Relativity (GR), which explains this phenomenon through spacetime curvature. This study introduces an alternative classical framework, the Quo Vadis Effect (QVE), based on the Procrustean Bed Effect (PBE), a velocity-dependent correction to gravitational potential energy. The QVE provides a classical explanation for Mercury's perihelion precession without invoking spacetime curvature.

This framework treats gravitons as both ballistic particles and waves, incorporating gravitational aberration. Both models yield results consistent with GR’s predictions for Mercury’s precession (orbital energy and orbital advance equations) within a Newtonian framework, while introducing an additional attractive force in the direction of Mercury's motion. This offers insights into other astrophysical phenomena, such as galaxy rotation curves and the expansion of the universe, without requiring dark matter or dark energy.

In this presentation, I will discuss the derivation of the QVE, its implications for classical and quantum gravitational theories, and its potential to challenge the necessity of spacetime curvature in gravitational models.