New theory removes 95 percent of the Universe

Most of the universe is made up of something no one knows what it is. It is called dark matter and dark energy. Not everyone is happy with this worldview.

For decades, scientists have been hunting for a substance called dark matter dark matterNo one knows what dark matter is, but it is believed to be particles that have mass but no electrical charge. Particles without an electric charge are invisible, and do not collide with each other as ordinary matter particles do. But because they have mass, they affect each other and ordinary matter with gravitational forces. Source: Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, UiO. Without luck.

Together with dark energy, dark matter makes up 95 percent of the content of the world we live in. Only 5 percent is “ordinary matter”, i.e. everything we can see, touch and feel. At least if the generally accepted “standard model” for modernity is to be believed cosmology cosmologyA branch of physics that deals with studies of the Universe as a whole (Cosmos)..

The experts do not know what dark matter and dark energy consist of, but they are used as important pieces in the puzzle that will illustrate the beginning of the universe.

But the model is constantly under attack. So far the latest attempt to torpedo it comes from Canada.

Back to old theories to explain the universe

The expansion of the universe is not caused by dark energy, as most experts believe today, says Rajendra Gupta, who is a professor at the University of Ottawa. You simply no longer need dark matter and energy to explain how the universe is put together, he believes.

In short, Gupta’s model assumes that natural forces weaken over time. One of the theories he builds on is called “tired light”. The theory was put forward in 1929. It implies that light loses energy over longer distances.

“By challenging the need for dark matter in the universe and providing evidence for a new cosmological model, this study opens new avenues for exploring the fundamental properties of the universe,” writes Gupta.

His research report is published in the Astrophysical Journal.

His latest theory is also linked to startling discoveries made with the space telescope James Webb James WebbInfrared telescope developed by Nasa, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency. Launched in 2021. Has taken over from the Hubble telescope as Nasa’s flagship in the search for answers about what happened in the Universe’s infancy..

Galaxies that shouldn’t be there

The James Webb space telescope was launched in 2021. It has set a new record for seeing far back in time. The Big Bang is today considered the beginning of the universe. Most people with an educated opinion believe that the Big Bang happened 13.8 billion years ago.

The Webb telescope imaged galaxies younger than 400 million years. That in itself was not surprising. Galaxies were expected.

But what was surprising was that the galaxies were too big and the stars in them too old – almost “full-grown”. They simply shouldn’t be there based on how cosmologists and astrophysicists understand physical laws.

“It is beginning to look as if we may have to reconsider key properties of the origin and evolution of the universe.” That’s what two physicists at the University of Rochester, New York, wrote in an article in the New York Times.

– If the observations are correct, we are in unexplored territory, claimed astronomer Mike Boylan-Kolchin at the University of Texas.

Parts of the cosmology should be changed, he suggested.

Thinks the world is twice as old

In the wake of the Webb discoveries, last summer Gupta presented his own theory and new calculations.

They showed that the universe must be 26.7 billion years old. So almost twice as much as previously thought.

This was also based on a variant of the aforementioned “tired light” theory. It is not considered by most researchers to be a real alternative to the current description of outer space.

Gupta’s calculation did not garner much applause from established astrophysicists, who asked the professor to come up with better “evidence” than he had presented.

Norwegian skepticism towards Gupta’s theory

– Unfortunately, Gupta’s theory cannot be the answer to the mysteries of the universe. Professor Per Barth Lilje tells Aftenposten. He heads the Department of Theoretical Astrophysics at the University of Oslo.

– It is always very interesting with alternative models, and very great to test our current “best theories”.

Lilje believes there are several details that do not fit. He points out that Gupta has selected individual observations that fit his theory. At the same time, there are a large number of other observations which “do not match at all” with Gupta’s model, but which fit well with the standard model.

But it is far from only Gupta who is on the hunt.

Spending billions to find new answers

It is not the case that all cosmologists have settled on the fact that the current model provides the final answers to what the universe is like.

– In fact, we literally spend billions of kroner trying to find deviations from the standard model, says Lilje.

He particularly highlights the new Euclid space telescope. It was launched last summer and is on a mission for the European space agency Esa. The aim is precisely to understand dark energy and dark matter better, through accurate observations and measurements of how the universe expands. Norway participates in the project.

– We hope to find clear deviations from what the current model predicts, i.a. with the Euclid Space Telescope. At the University of Oslo, other alternative models are also being worked on, says Lilje.

He emphasizes how important it is that new models and theories are constantly tested against what has already been done by accurate observations and experiments.