Simplified equations for gravitational field in the vector theory of gravity and new insights into dark energy

Abstract

Recently, a new alternative vector theory of gravity has been proposed which assumes that universe has fixed background Euclidean geometry and gravity is a vector field that alters this geometry [Phys. Scr. 92, 125001 (2017)]. It has been shown that vector gravity passes all available gravitational tests and yields, with no free parameters, the value of cosmological constant in agreement with observations. Here we obtain substantially simplified gravitational field equations of vector gravity which are more suitable for analytical and numerical analyses. We also provide a detailed explanation why in vector gravity in the reference frame of observer that takes a snapshot of the universe at time $t_0$ the ratio of the cosmological constant to the critical density is equal to 2/3 at $t=t_0$. We also show that dark energy does not affect universe evolution in the co-evolving reference frame. Thus, in reality, universe is expanding at a continually decelerating rate, with expansion asymptotically approaching zero.