Tidal tensor (original) (raw)

In Newton's theory of gravitation and in various relativistic classical theories of gravitation, such as general relativity, the tidal tensor represents 1. * tidal accelerations of a cloud of (electrically neutral, nonspinning) test particles, 2. * tidal stresses in a small object immersed in an ambient gravitational field. The tidal tensor represents the relative acceleration due to gravity of two test masses separated by an infinitesimal distance. The component represents the relative acceleration in the direction produced a displacement in the direction.