Latest news with #darkenergy
Sustainability Times
4 days ago
- General
- Sustainability Times
'Dark Energy Just Got Stranger': Groundbreaking Discovery Shakes the Foundations of How We Understand the Entire Universe
IN A NUTSHELL 🌌 The Dark Energy Survey (DES) has uncovered findings that challenge the notion of dark energy as a constant force. has uncovered findings that challenge the notion of dark energy as a constant force. 🔭 Using the powerful Dark Energy Camera (DECam) , researchers mapped a significant portion of the universe over six years. , researchers mapped a significant portion of the universe over six years. 📉 Anomalies in baryonic acoustic oscillations (BAO) suggest a smaller scale than predicted by the standard cosmological model. suggest a smaller scale than predicted by the standard cosmological model. 💡 New data from Type Ia supernovae strengthen the idea that dark energy might be dynamic, reshaping our cosmic understanding. The universe, as we perceive it, is a tapestry woven with the enigmatic threads of dark matter and dark energy. For decades, the standard cosmological model, known as ΛCDM, has crafted our scientific understanding, asserting that a staggering 95% of the cosmos is composed of these mysterious entities. Among them, dark energy is believed to be the driving force behind the accelerating expansion of the universe, acting as a repulsive force. However, recent findings from the Dark Energy Survey (DES)</strong) have introduced complexities that challenge our existing perceptions of this force. Dark Energy: A Cosmological Constant, or So We Thought Dark energy has long been modeled by the cosmological constant, a concept introduced by Albert Einstein in the early 20th century. This term represents a mysterious force supposed to counteract gravity, thereby causing the universe's expansion to accelerate. Within the framework of the ΛCDM model, which stands as the accepted paradigm of modern cosmology, this constant was presumed to remain unchanged over time. This assumption was grounded in several reasons. The ΛCDM model hinges on the belief that the universe is homogeneous and isotropic on large scales, meaning its properties are uniform in all directions and locations on average. This hypothesis underpins modern cosmology, suggesting that when observed over vast scales, the universe exhibits a uniform distribution of matter and energy, including dark energy. Thus, it seemed logical to assume that dark energy, like ordinary and dark matter, was evenly distributed throughout the cosmos. 'Japan Traps the Impossible': Scientists Develop Breakthrough Method to Extract Ammonia From Air and Water With Unmatched Precision Moreover, at the time of the ΛCDM model's formulation, scientists lacked a theoretical mechanism to explain any potential variability in dark energy over time or space. In the absence of such a mechanism, it was reasonable to consider dark energy as a constant, acting as a fundamental property of the universe responsible for its accelerating expansion. An Evolving Phenomenon? However, recent discoveries by researchers from the Dark Energy Survey (DES) suggest an entirely different possibility: dark energy might actually be evolving over time. The study, leveraging data from the 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam) mounted on the 4-meter Víctor M. Blanco Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, has mapped a portion of the universe covering nearly one-eighth of the sky over a span of six years. Various observational techniques were employed, including supernovae, galaxy clusters, and weak gravitational lensing. This Prehistoric Armored Fish From 465 Million Years Ago Could Be the Key to Understanding Why Our Teeth Still Hurt Initial analyses revealed notable anomalies. One of the primary findings is that the scale of baryonic acoustic oscillations (BAO), which describe the distribution of galaxies in the universe, appears smaller than predicted by the ΛCDM model. In simpler terms, the measured scale of these oscillations was 4% smaller than the standard cosmological model's predictions. If confirmed, this discrepancy could profoundly impact our understanding of the universe's expansion. Supernovae and Cosmic Distances: Shedding Additional Light In addition to the BAO data, another critical measure emerged from the study of Type Ia supernovae. These supernovae serve as 'standard candles' due to their known intrinsic brightness, allowing scientists to calculate their distances with remarkable precision. The DES findings, combined with supernova data, bolstered the idea that dark energy might be dynamic and not an immutable cosmological constant. This Stunning Scientific Breakthrough Just Tripled the Birth Rate of One of the World's Most Endangered Parrot Species The Dark Energy Survey recently released an extensive dataset on Type Ia supernovae, enabling highly precise measurements of cosmic distances. These new discoveries confirm the anomalies observed in the baryonic acoustic oscillations, adding weight to the possibility of evolving dark energy. Profound Implications for Cosmology If the DES findings are validated, they would signify a significant reconfiguration of our understanding of the universe. The cosmological constant, long considered a fundamental parameter in cosmology, might need to be replaced by a more complex view. Juan Mena-Fernández from the Laboratory of Subatomic Physics and Cosmology in Grenoble speaks of physics beyond the standard model. He suggests that if these new data are corroborated, it could pave the way for a scientific revolution, challenging long-established ideas. While the current DES results are not yet definitive, researchers anticipate further analyses. Additional data from probes like galaxy clusters and weak gravitational lensing effects should offer complementary insights into the nature of dark energy. For the scientific community, these discoveries present an opportunity to explore new theoretical avenues and consider more flexible cosmological models capable of explaining the observed anomalies. The upcoming months will be crucial in validating this new interpretation of dark energy and potentially revolutionizing our understanding of the universe. As we stand on the brink of potentially redefining our cosmic knowledge, one must wonder: What other mysteries might the universe hold, waiting to be unraveled by future explorations? Our author used artificial intelligence to enhance this article. Did you like it? 4.5/5 (26)
Times
19-05-2025
- Science
- Times
Audiobook read by AI is the opposite of soothing
When I can't get to sleep I do something strange. I put on an audiobook. A specific one: The Unknown Universe by Stuart Clark. I must have listened to it more than 70 times but I still can't entirely explain the appeal. It's not the most dazzling book on science. And it's not the most famous. It's possible that there's something about trying to understand challenging concepts such as dark energy that is soporific. Or maybe there's something reassuring about the perspective it provides. Why worry about tomorrow's presentation when the entire universe might one day go out like a light? However, one thing I do know is that the soothing human narrator, David Timson, is important. And I know this because I tried a
CBS News
13-05-2025
- Science
- CBS News
Universe will die "much sooner than expected," researchers say
Could dark energy cause the universe to collapse? The universe is poised to die much faster than previously thought, according to new research by Dutch scientists. But there's no great need to panic. We still have 10 to the power of 78 years before it happens — that's a one with 78 zeroes. However, that is a major revision from the previous estimate of 10 to the power of 1,100 years, notes the research paper from Radboud University, published in the Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics. "The final end of the universe is coming much sooner than expected but fortunately it still takes a very long time," said lead author Heino Falcke. A trio of scientists at Radboud set out to calculate when the most "durable" celestial bodies — white dwarf stars — would eventually die out. They based their calculations on Hawking radiation, named after celebrated British physicist Stephen Hawking. Hawking postulated in the mid-1970s that black holes leak radiation, slowly dissolving like aspirin in a glass of water -- giving them a finite lifetime. The Radboud scientists extended this to other objects in the universe, calculating that the "evaporation time" depends on density. This enabled them to calculate the theoretical dissolution of the longest-lasting body, the white dwarf. "By asking these kinds of questions and looking at extreme cases, we want to better understand the theory, and perhaps one day, we can unravel the mystery of Hawking radiation," said co-author Walter van Suijlekom. Humankind needn't worry too much about the end of the universe. Unless we escape planet Earth, we'll be long gone. Scientists think that our sun will be too hot for life in about a billion years, boiling our oceans. In about eight billion years, our star will eventually expand towards the Earth, finally gobbling up our by-then barren and lifeless planet and condemning it to a fiery death. Shedding light on dark energy The research comes just weeks after scientists released new findings that may also shed light on the fate of the universe. Researchers in March said new data shows dark energy — a mysterious force that makes up nearly 70% of the universe — may actually be weakening. If dark energy is constant, an idea first introduced by Albert Einstein in his theory of relativity, scientists say our universe may continue to expand forever, growing ever colder, lonelier and still. If dark energy ebbs with time, the universe could one day stop expanding and then eventually collapse on itself in what's called the "Big Crunch." "Now, there is the possibility that everything comes to an end," said cosmologist and study collaborator Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki of the University of Texas at Dallas. "Would we consider that a good or bad thing? I don't know." This image provided by NSF's NOIRLab shows the trails of stars above Kitt Peak National Observatory, where a telescope is mapping the universe to study a mysterious force called dark energy. NSF's NoirLab via AP Other efforts around the globe have an eye on dark energy and aim to release their own data in the coming years, including the European Space Agency's Euclid mission and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile. Launched in 2023, the ESA's $1.5 billion Euclid space telescope is equipped with a near-perfect 3-feet 11-inch-wide primary mirror and two instruments: a 600 megapixel visible light camera and a 64-megapixel infrared imaging spectrometer. The telescope's field of view is roughly twice the size of the full moon.
