Cosmological tests of the Hoyle-Narlikar conformal gravity

Abstract

For the first time the Hoyle-Narlikar theory with creation of matter and a variable gravitational constant G, is subjected to the following cosmological tests: (1) the magnitude versus z relation, (2) the N(m) versus m relation for quasars, (3) the metric angular diameters versus z relation, (4) the isophotal angles versus z relation, (5) the log N-log S radio source count, and finally (6) the 3 K radiation. It is shown that the theory passes all these tests just as well as the standard cosmology, with the additional advantage that the geometry of the universe is uniquely determined, with a curvature parameter equal to zero. It is also interesting to note that the variability of G affects the log N-log S curve in a way similar to the density evolution introduced in standard cosmologies. The agreement with the data is therefore achieved without recourse to an ad hoc density evolution.