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New method helps more accurately measure cosmological distances

  • September 3, 2023
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After a comprehensive statistical analysis of nearly a million galaxies, a team of researchers from various Chinese universities and the University of Córdoba was able to publish the

After a comprehensive statistical analysis of nearly a million galaxies, a team of researchers from various Chinese universities and the University of Córdoba was able to publish the results of the study in the journal. Nature Astronomy. For more than two years they worked on a project that would make it possible to determine cosmological distances with new and higher precision.

The research developed a new method for detecting baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO). These waves, whose existence was first proven in 2005, are among the few traces of the Big Bang that can still be detected in space.

During the first 380,000 years of the universe, they propagated like sound waves through matter hot enough to behave like liquid; this is similar to what happens when a stone is thrown into a pond. Eventually the universe expanded and cooled to the point where these waves froze in time.

The interesting thing about these oscillations, witnessed throughout almost the entire history of the cosmos, is that their exact durations are known, so they are now very useful for measuring cosmological distances based on the distance between galaxies. Therefore, detecting them and determining their sizes are extremely important in terms of accurately mapping the universe at very distant points.

“The results of this work now allow us to detect these waves using a new and independent method. By combining the two, we can determine cosmic distances with greater precision.” explained researcher Antonio J. Cuesta of the University of Córdoba department.

A new method: Searching for anomalies in the orientation of galaxies

This new study analyzed a database of nearly one million galaxies using statistical methods and paid particular attention to two very different factors: the ellipticity of galaxies and the density around them.

In terms of their orientation, galaxies tend to extend towards places where other galaxies are more due to gravity, but there are certain places in the universe where this effect is not as intense. “The statistics tell us about the localization of the baryon acoustic oscillations where the galaxies are not pointing where they should be, because these waves also act as points of gravitational attraction,” explained Antonio J. Cuesta.

Also read – Astronomers photographed Jupiter during a cosmic collision

Looking away, looking back

“The first practical application this research could have is to more precisely determine where galaxies are located and the distance between them and Earth, but in a way, we’re also looking into the past,” explained the researcher.

This new approach to baryon acoustic oscillations, which holds the key to answering some big questions about the universe, opens new doors in the world of astronomy. Determining cosmological distances offers new clues about the expansion history of the universe and helps us understand the composition of the universe in terms of dark matter and energy, two of the universe’s most elusive and mysterious components. Source

Source: Port Altele

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