scispace - formally typeset
Journal ArticleDOI

Evidence for a positive cosmological constant from flows of galaxies and distant supernovae

Idit Zehavi, +2 more
- 16 Sep 1999 - 
- Vol. 401, Iss: 6750, pp 252-254
Reads0
Chats0
TLDR
In this article, an independent constraint on the lower bound to the mass density was derived based on deviations of galaxy velocities from a smooth universal expansion, and together with a nearly flat universe in which the contributions from mass density and the cosmological constant are comparable.
Abstract
Recent observations1,2 of high-redshift supernovae seem to suggest that the global geometry of the Universe may be affected by a ‘cosmological constant’, which acts to accelerate the expansion rate with time. But these data by themselves still permit an open universe of low mass density and no cosmological constant. Here we derive an independent constraint on the lower bound to the mass density, based on deviations of galaxy velocities from a smooth universal expansion3,4,5,6,7. This constraint rules out a low-density open universe with a vanishing cosmological constant, and together the two favour a nearly flat universe in which the contributions from mass density and the cosmological constant are comparable. This type of universe, however, seems to require a degree of fine tuning of the initial conditions that is in apparent conflict with ‘common wisdom’.

read more

Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI

The Case for a Positive Cosmological Λ-Term

TL;DR: In this article, the authors review both observational and theoretical aspects of a small cosmological Λ-term and discuss the current observational situation focusing on cosmology tests of Λ including the age of the universe, high redshift supernovae, gravitational lensing, galaxy clustering and the cosmic microwave background.

Existential risks: analyzing human extinction scenarios and related hazards

Nick Bostrom
TL;DR: This paper analyzes a recently emerging category: that of existential risks, threats that could case the authors' extinction or destroy the potential of Earth - originating intelligent life.
Journal ArticleDOI

Dark matter and background light

TL;DR: In this article, the authors review what is known about dark matter and energy from their impact on the light of the night sky and conclude that the dark matter is most likely to be WIMPs if conventional cosmology holds; or higher-dimensional sources if spacetime needs to be extended.
Journal ArticleDOI

Current Cosmological Constraints from a 10 Parameter Cosmic Microwave Background Analysis

TL;DR: In this article, the authors compute the constraints on a "standard" 10 parameter cold dark matter (CDM) model from the most recent CMB data and other observations, exploring 30 million discrete models and two continuous parameters.
Journal ArticleDOI

Experimental constraints on the axion dark matter halo density

TL;DR: In this article, a search that probes the local Galactic halo axion density using the Sikivie radio frequency cavity technique was carried out and it was shown that axions of Kim and Shifman, Vainshtein, and Zakharov contribute no more than 0.45 GeV cm 3 of mass density to the local dark matter halo over this mass range.
References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI

The Cosmological Constant Problem

TL;DR: In this article, five different approaches to the cosmological constant problem are described, and a brief review of the history of this problem is given. But none of the approaches are considered in this paper.
Related Papers (5)