The Extravagant Universe

The Extravagant Universe
Author :
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Total Pages : 304
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780691173184
ISBN-13 : 0691173184
Rating : 4/5 (184 Downloads)

Book Synopsis The Extravagant Universe by : Robert P. Kirshner

Download or read book The Extravagant Universe written by Robert P. Kirshner and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2016-10-04 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Extravagant Universe tells the story of a remarkable adventure of scientific discovery. One of the world's leading astronomers, Robert Kirshner, takes readers inside a lively research team on the quest that led them to an extraordinary cosmological discovery: the expansion of the universe is accelerating under the influence of a dark energy that makes space itself expand. In addition to sharing the story of this exciting discovery, Kirshner also brings the science up-to-date in a new epilogue. He explains how the idea of an accelerating universe--once a daring interpretation of sketchy data--is now the standard assumption in cosmology today. This measurement of dark energy--a quality of space itself that causes cosmic acceleration--points to a gaping hole in our understanding of fundamental physics. In 1917, Einstein proposed the "cosmological constant" to explain a static universe. When observations proved that the universe was expanding, he cast this early form of dark energy aside. But recent observations described first-hand in this book show that the cosmological constant--or something just like it--dominates the universe's mass and energy budget and determines its fate and shape. Warned by Einstein's blunder, and contradicted by the initial results of a competing research team, Kirshner and his colleagues were reluctant to accept their own result. But, convinced by evidence built on their hard-earned understanding of exploding stars, they announced their conclusion that the universe is accelerating in February 1998. Other lines of inquiry and parallel supernova research now support a new synthesis of a cosmos dominated by dark energy but also containing several forms of dark matter. We live in an extravagant universe with a surprising number of essential ingredients: the real universe we measure is not the simplest one we could imagine.


The Extravagant Universe Related Books

The Extravagant Universe
Language: en
Pages: 304
Authors: Robert P. Kirshner
Categories: Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2016-10-04 - Publisher: Princeton University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Extravagant Universe tells the story of a remarkable adventure of scientific discovery. One of the world's leading astronomers, Robert Kirshner, takes reade
Pneumatology and the Christian-Buddhist Dialogue
Language: en
Pages: 321
Authors: Amos Yong
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 2012-07-26 - Publisher: BRILL

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Recent thinking in Christian theology of religions has taken a “pneumatological turn” which asks how the doctrine of the Holy Spirit can contribute to the i
Mystery of Black Fire, White Fire
Language: en
Pages: 387
Authors: Bruce Friedman
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 2016-05-17 - Publisher: iUniverse

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Faith forms the foundation of both science and religion. In Mystery of Black Fire, White Fire, author Bruce Friedman uses this thought as a springboard for a di
Worlds without End
Language: en
Pages: 358
Authors: Mary-Jane Rubenstein
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 2014-01-28 - Publisher: Columbia University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A religion professor elucidates the theory of the multiverse, its history, and its reception in science, philosophy, religion, and literature. Multiverse cosmol
A to Z of Scientists in Space and Astronomy
Language: en
Pages: 337
Authors: Deborah Todd
Categories: Astronomers
Type: BOOK - Published: 2014-05-14 - Publisher: Infobase Publishing

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Profiles more than 130 scientists from around the world who made important contributions in the fields of space and astronomy, including John Couch Adams, Alber