High School Is the universe expanding faster than expected

Click For Summary
SUMMARY

The universe is expanding 5-9% faster than previously expected, as determined by Hubble Space Telescope astronomers who refined the Hubble constant to an unprecedented accuracy of 2.4%. This finding, detailed in Adam Reiss et al.'s paper, reveals a primary fit of H0 = 73.00 ± 1.75 km s−1 Mpc−1, significantly higher than the Planck Collaboration's prediction of 66.93 ± 0.62 km s−1 Mpc−1. The discrepancy raises questions about potential systematic errors in measurements or the need for revisions in cosmological models, which could fundamentally alter our understanding of the universe's evolution.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of the Hubble constant and its significance in cosmology
  • Familiarity with Cepheid variable stars and their role in distance measurement
  • Knowledge of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) and its implications
  • Basic grasp of cosmological models, particularly Cold Dark Matter (CDM)
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the implications of the Hubble constant on cosmological models
  • Explore Cepheid variable stars and their use in measuring cosmic distances
  • Study the Cosmic Microwave Background and its significance in cosmology
  • Investigate the potential systematic errors in astronomical measurements
USEFUL FOR

Astronomers, cosmologists, and physics enthusiasts interested in the dynamics of the universe and the implications of its accelerated expansion.

wolram
Gold Member
Dearly Missed
Messages
4,410
Reaction score
551
Here they use information gathered form Cepheids, are these parallax measurements accurate?

From science daily.
Date:
June 2, 2016
Source:
Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)
Summary:
Hubble Space Telescope astronomers have discovered that the universe is expanding 5-9% percent faster than expected. They made the discovery by refining the universe's current expansion rate to unprecedented accuracy, reducing the uncertainty to only 2.4%. The team made the refinements by developing innovative techniques that improved the precision of distance measurements to faraway galaxies. These measurements are fundamental to making more precise calculations of how fast the universe expands with time, a value called the Hubble constant.
 
Space news on Phys.org
You can read Adam Reiss et al.'s paper on the physics ArXiv here:Abstract A 2.4% Determination of the Local Value of the Hubble Constant and .pdf paper.

5. Discussion
Our primary fit of H0 = 73.00 ± 1.75 km s−1 Mpc−1 is 3.3 higher than the value of 66.93 ±0.62 kms−1Mpc−1 predicted by Planck Collaboration et al. (2016) based on CDM with 3 neutrino flavors having a mass of 0.06 eV and the Planck CMB data (TT,TE,EE+SIMlow; 3.1 for TT+SIMlow). Assuming the 3.3 difference is not a fluke (99.9% confidence), possible explanations include systematic errors in the local H0 or CMB measurements, or an unexpected feature in the cosmological model that connects them.
Garth
 
Hi. I'm trying to learn about this myself. What are the implications of a faster expanding universe?
 
Cosmologists now have to see if that value is still compatible with other, independent measurements. If yes, it helps to improve the precision of some parameters about the universe. If it is not consistent, it gets interesting.
 
  • Like
Likes JeJe
Interesting is probably sugar coating it, it gets downright ugly in a hurry. Scientists are habituated into assuming the fundamental laws of physics are fixed and unchanging, at least on times scales up to the age of the universe. If this assumption is falsified, everything we think we know about the universe is on shaky ground.
 
Chronos said:
If this assumption is falsified
It would not be. It would just mean we don't understand the evolution of the universe between the very early stages and the current day well enough.
 
What are some advantages and disadvantages of expanding universe ?
And how it can affect us
 
A universe that never expanded would gravitationally collapse, probably in less time than it took for Earth to form. A universe that expands too fast would dilute matter to the point that not even stars could form.
 
  • Like
Likes rishivashista13

Similar threads

  • · Replies 19 ·
Replies
19
Views
4K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
  • · Replies 8 ·
Replies
8
Views
2K
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
3K
  • · Replies 27 ·
Replies
27
Views
4K
Replies
43
Views
6K
  • · Replies 33 ·
2
Replies
33
Views
4K
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
3K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
4K