Reverse Mechanism of Gravitational Time Dilation and Decisive Verification Using GPS

Abstract

Whether the atomic transition spacing varies with gravitational potential is anuntested presupposition in general relativity. This assumption directly deter-mines the causal direction of gravitational time dilation: if the atomic transitionspacing is a universal constant, time flows slower in deeper gravitational poten-tials; if the spacing increases with gravitational potential, time flows faster indeeper potentials. This paper constructs a benchmark synchronization model anddemonstrates that to maintain time synchronization with ground stations, satel-lite atomic clocks must be preset to run slower before launch. This operationalfact directly proves that proper time on the Earth’s surface flows faster thanthat of orbiting satellites, providing decisive evidence for this fundamental issue.Furthermore, we design a directly realizable laboratory experiment: comparingthe absolute oscillation counts of optical lattice clocks positioned on differentfloors of a building, providing decisive evidence to determine whether local propertime flows faster in stronger or weaker gravitational potentials. This experimentis expected to definitively establish the true relationship between gravitationalpotential and local time rate.