Astrophysics

Photon-Tension-Time Theory (PTT): A Non-Metric Unification of Gravitational Mechanics, Photon Propagation, and Cosmic Stasis

Authors: Joseph Shaffer
Comments: 11 Pages.

Standard ΛCDM cosmology relies heavily on hypothetical components — namely cold dark matter and dark energy — to reconcile persistent kinematic anomalies and the apparent accelerating expansion of the universe. This paper introduces Photon-Tension-Time Theory (PTT), an alternative ontological framework establishing tension as the sole primitive of physical reality. Under PTT, the universe is non-expanding. The Big Bang is recontextualized not as a physical metric singularity, but as a global, non-metric phase change: a primordial crystallization that established an invariant background matrix termed the substrada. Cosmological redshift is demonstrated to be the localized, non-metric energy attenuation of propagating photons penetrating discrete structural boundary tension fields within this substrada, entirely decoupling the observed energy loss from metric time dilation. Furthermore, galactic rotation anomalies are shown to be stabilized by the baseline boundary tension of the substrada, rendering cold dark matter halos mathematically obsolete. Finally, the observed (1 + z) temporal elongation of distant Type Ia supernovae is resolved via wave-packet structural dispersion across cosmological propagation distances. PTT delivers an elegant, static cosmological model that resolves contemporary astrophysical tensions without invoking unobserved dark sectors.
Category: Astrophysics