Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2018/iii/paper-309/3/b/ii/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 309 3 b ii Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
The time-dependent components of the second mass moment tensor contain and . Taking two time derivatives for the retarded quadrupole field leaves that frequency unchanged. Hence the gravitational-wave frequency isHere is angular frequency and counts cycles per unit time. If , the mass quadrupole moment is time independent, so the leading gravitational wave amplitude vanishes and there is no emitted quadrupole frequency to measure.
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