The professor spent his career studying theories of black holes and general relativity.
After years of research, Ronald Mallett, professor emeritus of physics at the University of Connecticut, claims to have developed the time travel equation, Earth.com mentioned. It is worth noting that the astrophysicist's obsession with time travel and its equation is rooted in his childhood. Mr Mallett was 10 years old when his father died suddenly of a heart attack, an event that the world says changed the course of his life forever.
He then made it his life's mission to find out if time travel was possible. He found solace in reading – including H.G. Wells' classic science fiction novel 'Time Machine.'
“The book changed my life. It is the first paragraph that changed my life. I still remember the saying 'Scientists know very well that time is only a kind of space.' Why can't we move in time while moving in another? Dimensions of space?
The professor then spent his career investigating Albert Einstein's theories about black holes and general relativity. But the moment of inspiration came while he was lying in hospital after suffering from a heart condition. “It turns out that black holes can create a gravitational field that can create time loops that can allow us to go back in time,” he explained.
His vision of the time machine centers on what he calls an “intense, continuous rotating beam of light” to manipulate gravity. His device will use a ring of lasers to mimic the space-time distorting effects of a black hole.
''Suppose you have a cup of coffee in front of you right now. Start stirring the coffee with the spoon. It's starting to spin around, isn't it? This is what a rotating black hole does. In Einstein's theory, space and time are related to each other. That's why it's called space-time. He explained that when the black hole rotates, it will cause time to change.
However, he said it would need “enormous amounts of energy” and he doesn't know how big this “time machine” would be to work. He's also unsure when or if it will happen, but added: “I've figured out how to do it. In theory, it's possible.”
Critics have said his device must be huge, but Mallett is optimistic it can one day be achieved.
“Beer fan. Travel specialist. Amateur alcohol scholar. Bacon trailblazer. Music fanatic.”