A Universe of Dark Energy

[Fraser]

The discovery of dark energy was one of the biggest surprises in astronomy. Instead of a nice, predictable expanding Universe, acted on only by gravity, astronomers turned up a mysterious repulsive force accelerating the expansion of the Universe. ...

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[iron4]

So if dark energy was already acting 9 billion years ago, maybe we can extend that cipher further to the very beginning, it could even be that dark energy is the same inflaton that fuelled inflation...

[parsec_man]

Why do we think dark energy must be pushing everything further and further apart? Is the evidence pointing to dark energy only being created behind us, where we have already been, closer towards the center point of the Big Bang? Is there anything saying why it could not suddenly appear in front of us or to the side of us, etc... So that its' only interaction is not only pushing everything further apart and further out but could also be pushing things towards each other or back towards the epicenter of the Big Bang? Could there be large mass of it of somewhere out ahead of us that could stop us? Or the same situation exist for some other galaxy,etc... ?

[omar]

The discovery of dark energy was one of the biggest surprises in astronomy. Instead of a nice, predictable expanding Universe, acted on only by gravity, astronomers turned up a mysterious repulsive force accelerating the expansion of the Universe. ...

Read the full blog entry

im still a little onfused about that dark energy, so if u can further explain to me, and y r u saying that it's a repulsive force. thank u

[epitide]

im still a little onfused about that dark energy, so if u can further explain to me, and y r u saying that it's a repulsive force. thank u

Energy and mass are the same thing but in different states, kind of interchangable. If mass displays a possitive force (+) such as Gravity, then Energy should also display some type of force as well. They are suggesting that this force may have an opposite sine (-). Gravity pulls things inward (+) and Dark Energy tends to expand (-) things.

They suggest that this (-) force is very weak and it has taken a few billion years to distance itself from large mass areas so it can now become dominant. It's like the further away from mass (gravity) it gets, the greater it's control in that area of space.

I think.

[clint]

(Repeating part of my question from a different thread

I've heard about the universe eventually running out of energy (in an ever-expanding scenario).

Could the assumption of dark energy affect or change this?

[Bogie]

Like Fraser said, "The discovery of dark energy was one of the biggest surprises in astronomy." But never the less, it must be considered carefully before any monumental change is made to mainstream thinking.

Immediately, right off the bat, the feeling is best described as uncomfortable that such a repulsive force could reside within the parameters of our known, visible, familiar expanding universe. It will take years of hard work to put the math to it that can be accepted as mainstream.

One simple answer that is against the mainstream is that our known, visible, familiar expanding universe is expanding into a greater universe of lower energy density. There is as big or bigger problem with that view because it might seem that the only clue to the existence of such a greater universe is the acceleration itself if you are strongly ensconced in the mainstream.

If science can put any comprehensible explanation and math together to keep it a repulsive force from within our familiar playing field they are committed to do that. IMHO, only as a last resort and with the greatest evaluation, study, theorizing and serious debate will science ever be able to say, "Maybe we are expanding into a greater universe." And that process is probably the way it should be but discussion of the possibilities is still an appropriate part of such a deliberate approach.