# Retarded potential in gravitational field?

Is there a retarded potential concept in gravitational field similar to electromagnetic radiation?

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dear user26742 have you seen researchgate.net/post/… and the answers there? If so, maybe you could ask what else you want to know about gravity radiation further to the pithy descriptions in the answers on that web page. – WetSavannaAnimal aka Rod Vance Aug 3 '13 at 9:14

In electromagnetism, we have a four-potential $A$, and differentiation of this potential gives the observable fields. The best analogy in GR is that we have the metric $g$, and a second derivative of this gives the Riemann tensor, which is what's observable. So $g$ can be thought of as "the potential." (In a static spacetime $g$ can be written in terms of a scalar potential $\Phi$, but that's of no interest here because we're talking about gravitational waves, so the spacetime isn't static.) The question is then whether we can have a "retarded metric." For the reasons given in the first paragraph, the answer is in general no. However, in the limit of weak fields, the answer is yes. For a treatment in this style, see Carroll, Lecture Notes on General Relativity, ch. 6.