In theoretical physics and especially general theory of relativity, asymptotic flatness is the property of a geometry or a configuration in general relativity which means that in appropriate coordinates, the limit of the metric at infinity approaches the metric of the flat space. For spacetimes satisfying asymptotic flatness, it is often possible to calculate the ADM energy.
It is also possible to consider asymptotically locally flat (ALF) spaces that can include additional discrete identifications of points at infinity (asymptotically, they are orbifolds).
Famous quotes containing the word flatness:
“On a level plain, simple mounds look like hills; and the insipid flatness of our present bourgeoisie is to be measured by the altitude of its “great intellects.””
—Karl Marx (1818–1883)