Scientists May Be One Step Closer to Figuring Out How Fast the Universe is Expanding

Scientists have long been aware of the universe's expansion. However, there is much debate among scientists on just how fast the universe is expanding.
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The universe is big, and it continues to get bigger every day.

The hotly debated topic of how quickly space itself is expanding is vital to understanding the actual scale, size, and age of our universe and the speed at which the universe is growing is called the Hubble Constant.

The Hubble Constant, named after pioneering astronomer and University of Chicago alum Edwin Hubble, underpins everything in the universe—from when the Big Bang happened to how much dark matter exists. It helps scientists sketch out a theory of the history and structure of the universe.

Edwin Hubble was the first to observe that objects astronomers once thought were spiral nebulae were actually entire galaxies outside our Milky Way, and that space was much, much bigger than we thought.

Because many of these other galaxies had wavelengths that had been so stretched out, the light they emitted was tinted red, and astronomers realized they were heading away from us.

Establishing that the universe was expanding was the easy part, but pinning down the rate it’s doing so was a bit tougher.

Learn more about the Hubble Constant, the Universe’s growth, and the different approaches to solving this 90-year-old problem on this episode of Elements.

#Universe #Hubble #Galaxy #Space #Science #Seeker #Elements

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Read More:
How fast is the Universe expanding? Cosmologists just got more confused
https://www.nature.com/articles/d4158...
"For much of this decade, the two most precise gauges of the Universe’s rate of expansion have been in glaring disagreement. Now, a highly anticipated independent technique that cosmologists hoped would solve the conundrum is instead adding to the confusion."

New Hubble Constant Measurement Adds to Mystery of Universe’s Expansion Rate
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/...
"Now, University of Chicago professor Wendy Freedman and colleagues have a new measurement for the rate of expansion in the modern universe, suggesting the space between galaxies is stretching faster than scientists would expect. Freedman's is one of several recent studies that point to a nagging discrepancy between modern expansion measurements and predictions based on the universe as it was more than 13 billion years ago, as measured by the European Space Agency's Planck satellite."

The Hubble Constant
https://btc.montana.edu/ceres/html/un...
"The Hubble Constant can be stated as a simple mathematical expression, Ho = v/d, where v is the galaxy's radial outward velocity (in other words, motion along our line-of-sight), d is the galaxy's distance from earth, and Ho is the current value of the Hubble Constant."

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