The Dark Strikes Back
This blog has often reported speculation about a repulsive "dark" energy. Curiously, Dark Lords refuse to acknowledge alternative ideas. From their first paper back in 1998, they have tried to rule out other explanations. A Space.com article Bizarre Dark Energy Theory has been picked up by everyone from CBS to the Albuquerque Express. Using data from Hubble's WFC2 camera, which astronauts installed during STS-125, a Dark Lord claims to have ruled out an alternative to DE.
This may be referring to the "Bubble" hypothesis from Oxford's Timothy Clifton and Pedro Ferreira. In this theory, we live inside a cosmic "bubble" of different density. This led SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN to ask in a cover story: Does Dark Energy Really Exist? We reported in 2009:
Now They Ask: Does It Really Exist?
Alternately the Dark Lord may be trying to squelch a theory from Blake Temple of UC Davis and Joel Smoller. Their work suggests that our galaxy is in the middle of a density fluctuation that mimics the effects of acceleration. This led NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC to ask:
Dark Energy's Demise?
Today there are multiple alternatives to a repulsive "dark" energy. The Dark Lord has not yet ruled out the simplest alternative, one that can not be ruled out no matter how many supernovae are found. Redshifts are proportional to v/c, velocity divided by the speed of light. The universe may not be accelerating, but the speed of light is slowing down.
Dark Lords can call this "Undesirable No. 1"
UPDATE: Void proponent and "dark energy" skeptic Subir Sarkar of Oxford reports that the WFC2 data only rules out some void models, not others. The assertion that DE's existence is proved is quite premature.
This may be referring to the "Bubble" hypothesis from Oxford's Timothy Clifton and Pedro Ferreira. In this theory, we live inside a cosmic "bubble" of different density. This led SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN to ask in a cover story: Does Dark Energy Really Exist? We reported in 2009:
Now They Ask: Does It Really Exist?
Alternately the Dark Lord may be trying to squelch a theory from Blake Temple of UC Davis and Joel Smoller. Their work suggests that our galaxy is in the middle of a density fluctuation that mimics the effects of acceleration. This led NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC to ask:
Dark Energy's Demise?
Today there are multiple alternatives to a repulsive "dark" energy. The Dark Lord has not yet ruled out the simplest alternative, one that can not be ruled out no matter how many supernovae are found. Redshifts are proportional to v/c, velocity divided by the speed of light. The universe may not be accelerating, but the speed of light is slowing down.
Dark Lords can call this "Undesirable No. 1"
UPDATE: Void proponent and "dark energy" skeptic Subir Sarkar of Oxford reports that the WFC2 data only rules out some void models, not others. The assertion that DE's existence is proved is quite premature.
Labels: dark energy, speed of light
posted by L. Riofrio at 4:42 PM
3 Comments:
Don't worry. Their paper is appearing in an April 1 issue of ApJ. No one will take their opinion seriously.
Your encouragement is always appreciated. Alternatives to DE don't seem to get as much press, or funding. So easy to follow the herd....
I hope that they can fix the problem with the dark that it strikes back. Something must be done to fix it as quick as possible.
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