Serguei Vladilenovich Krasnikov (; 10 September 1961 – 19 March 2024) was a Russian
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
,
Doctor of Sciences
A Doctor of Sciences, abbreviated д-р наук or д. н.; ; ; ; is a higher doctoral degree in the Russian Empire, Soviet Union and many Commonwealth of Independent States countries. One of the prerequisites of receiving a Doctor of Sciences ...
in Physical and Mathematical Sciences, graduate of
Leningrad State University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBGU; ) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the Great, the university from the be ...
. He became famous for his contributions to
theoretical physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental p ...
, in particular the development and mathematical modeling of the
Krasnikov tube
A Krasnikov tube is a speculative mechanism for space travel involving the warping of spacetime into permanent superluminal tunnels. The resulting structure is analogous to a wormhole or an immobile Alcubierre drive (and like them requires exotic ...
and its influence on the principle of causality,
closed timelike curve
In mathematical physics, a closed timelike curve (CTC) is a world line in a Lorentzian manifold, of a material particle in spacetime, that is "closed", returning to its starting point. This possibility was first discovered by Willem Jacob van St ...
s and
superluminal motion
In astronomy, superluminal motion is the apparently faster-than-light motion seen in some radio galaxies, BL Lac objects, quasars, blazars and recently also in some galactic sources called microquasars. Bursts of energy moving out along the ...
.
Life
Krasnikov obtained a doctorate (
CSc.) in physics and mathematics from Leningrad State University in 1985. In 1987-1990 he worked at the Navy Institute of Radioelectronics. From 1990 to his death in 2024 he was based at
Pulkovo Observatory
The Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory (), officially named the Central Astronomical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences at Pulkovo, is the principal astronomical observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences. It is located 19 km south ...
in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Krasnikov’s work was focused on theoretical physics, specifically on the development of the
Krasnikov tube
A Krasnikov tube is a speculative mechanism for space travel involving the warping of spacetime into permanent superluminal tunnels. The resulting structure is analogous to a wormhole or an immobile Alcubierre drive (and like them requires exotic ...
and its applications in causality,
closed timelike curves
In mathematical physics, a closed timelike curve (CTC) is a world line in a Lorentzian manifold, of a material particle in spacetime, that is "closed", returning to its starting point. This possibility was first discovered by Willem Jacob van Sto ...
, and hyperfast travel.
In 2001, Krasnikov worked at
Starlab
Starlab NV/SA was a multidisciplinary, blue sky research institute established to serve as an incubator for long-term and basic research in the spirit of Bell Labs, MIT Media Lab, Xerox PARC, and Interval Research. Its primary headquarters was ...
, in a joint NASA/USAF-funded project to assess the viability of time travel under realistic physical conditions.
In 2002, he attended the 11th UK Conference on the Foundations of Physics hosted by the
Faculty of Philosophy, University of Oxford
The Faculty of Philosophy, University of Oxford was founded in 2001. It is part of Oxford's Humanities Division. The faculty is located next to Somerville College on Woodstock Road. As of 2021, it is ranked 1st in the UK and 2nd in the English-s ...
at which he delivered the paper "Time machine (1988-2001)".
See also
*
Alcubierre drive
The Alcubierre drive () is a speculative warp drive idea according to which a spacecraft could achieve apparent faster-than-light travel by contracting space in front of it and expanding space behind it, under the assumption that a configurabl ...
*
Wormhole
A wormhole is a hypothetical structure that connects disparate points in spacetime. It can be visualized as a tunnel with two ends at separate points in spacetime (i.e., different locations, different points in time, or both). Wormholes are base ...
References
External links
Homepage at the Alexander Friedmann Laboratory for Theoretical Physics
Curriculum Vitaeat the Friedmann Laboratory website
TEDxBrussels 2009Serguei Krasnikov on time travel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krasnikov, Sergey
1961 births
2024 deaths
Russian physicists
Quantum physicists
Russian scientists