ON A HOLE IN THE UNIVERSE

SOMETHING OLD BUT NEW

Hope everyone's having a great Thanksgiving holiday with family and friends.

This bit from New Scientist is one mind-bender for me this evening, especially as I, like so many others, deal with a two-day Thanksgiving food coma:

"The void: Imprint of another universe?

IN AUGUST, radio astronomers announced that they had found an enormous hole in the universe. Nearly a billion light years across, the void lies in the constellation Eridanus and has far fewer stars, gas and galaxies than usual.

It is bigger than anyone imagined possible and is beyond the present understanding of cosmology. What could cause such a gaping hole? One team of physicists has a breathtaking explanation: "It is the unmistakable imprint of another universe beyond the edge of our own," says Laura Mersini-Houghton of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

It is a staggering claim. If Mersini-Houghton's team is right, the giant void is the first experimental evidence for another universe. It would also vindicate string theory, our most promising understanding of how the universe works at its most fundamental level."

Going to have to keep track of this, as the experts try and get their minds around this.
Happy Thanksgiving weekend, all.

 

Comments

[Alex Tolley]

"It is a staggering claim". That about sums it up. No doubt far more prosaic explanations will emerge in due course.