Numerical simulations of singular spacetimes

Abstract

The formation of spacetime singularities has been studied using a variety of numerical methods. Many of these simulations are done in the case of compact Cauchy surfaces and yield singularites that are spacelike, local, and oscillatory. Other simulations are done in the case of asymptotic flatness and spherical symmetry, and yield singularities that are null and weak. This yields a picture of gravitational collapse in which both types of singularity are present, one encountered during black hole formation and the other long after the black hole has formed.