The Light/Dark Universe: Light from Galaxies, Dark Matter and Dark Energy

If there are an infinite--or nearly infinite--number of stars in the universe, people began asking as modern astronomy became established, how could the sky ever be dark? It was non-scientists who first suggested that the universe was so big and so young that all the light had not arrived yet; scientists sneered of course, but eventually came up with the same answer. Overduin (Stanford U.) and Wesson (U. of Waterloo, Canada) explain the phenomenon, first in plain English, then with increasingly sophisticated physics and mathematics. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

To the eyes of the average person and the trained scientist, the night sky is dark, even though the universe is populated by myriads of bright galaxies. Why this happens is a question commonly called Olbers' Paradox, and dates from at least 1823. How dark is the night sky is a question which preoccupies astrophysicists at the present. The answer to both questions tells us about the origin of the universe and the nature of its contents — luminous galaxies like the Milky Way, plus the dark matter between them and the mysterious dark energy which appears to be pushing everything apart. In this book, the fascinating history of Olbers' Paradox is reviewed, and the intricate physics of the light/dark universe is examined in detail. The fact that the night sky is dark (a basic astronomical observation that anybody can make) turns out to be connected with the finite age of the universe, thereby confirming some event like the Big Bang. But the space between the galaxies is not perfectly black, and data on its murkiness at various wavelengths can be used to constrain and identify its unseen constituents.

General

ISBN		9789812834416
Fiction/Non-Fiction		Non-Fiction
Publisher		World Scientific Pub Co Inc
Pages		225
List Price		$61.00
Author		Overduin, James M. Wesson, Paul S.
Publication Date		08/29/2008
Release Status		In Print
Format		Hardcover
Language		English
Measurements		Height: 9.25 Inches (US) Width: 6.25 Inches (US) Thickness: 0.75 Inches (US) Unit Weight: 1.25 Pounds (US)