The Extravagant Universe: Exploding Stars, Dark Energy, and the Accelerating Cosmos

From Scientific American
Astronomer Kirshner, the Clowes Professor of Science at Harvard University and head of the optical and infrared division at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, is part of a team studying supernovae that, by their apparent brightness, make it possible to measure distances in the universe. "The observations of distant supernovae show that we live in a universe that is not static as Einstein thought, and not just expanding as Hubble showed, but accelerating! We attribute this increase in expansion over time to a dark energy with an outward-pushing pressure.... Dark energy makes up the missing component of mass-energy that theorists have sought, reconciles the ages of objects with the present expansion rate of the universe, and complements new measurements of the lingering glow of the Big Bang itself to make a neat and surprising picture for the contents of the universe." It is an extravagant universe: "It has neutrinos as hot dark matter; something unknown as cold dark matter; inflation in the first 10-35 second after the Big Bang; and acceleration by dark energy now." Kirshner makes the story sing and the concepts of astronomy vivid.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

One of the world's leading astronomers tells the story of unlocking an astonishing cosmic secret. Supernova expert Robert Kirshner brings readers inside a lively research team on the quest that led them to an extraordinary cosmological discovery: the expansion of the universe is accelerating under the influence of a dark energy that makes space itself expand.

Measurements of light from exploding stars -- some of them halfway across the universe -- let these astronomers trace the history of cosmic expansion. The results have been amazing. Instead of a universe slowing down due to gravity as theory predicted, observations reveal a universe whose expansion is speeding up. This measurement of dark energy -- a quality of space itself that causes cosmic acceleration -- points to a gaping hole in our understanding of fundamental physics. In 1917, Einstein proposed the "cosmological constant" to explain a static universe. When observations proved that the universe was expanding, he cast this early form of dark energy aside. But recent observations described first-hand in this book show that the cosmological constant -- or something just like it -- dominates the universe's mass and energy budget and determines its fate and shape. Warned by Einstein's blunder and contradicted by the initial results of a competing research team, Kirshner and his colleagues were reluctant to accept their own result. But, convinced by evidence built on their hard-earned understanding of exploding stars, they announced their conclusion that the universe is accelerating in February 1998. Other lines of inquiry and parallel supernova research now support a new synthesis of a cosmos dominated by dark energy but also containing several forms of dark matter. We live in an extravagant universe with a surprising number of essential ingredients: the real universe we measure is not the simplest one we could imagine. This book invites any reader to share in the excitement of a remarkable adventure of discovery.

FROM THE CRITICS

The New York Times

Unlike many other recent books on the topic, The Extravagant Universe is the gripping story of how two competing groups of scientists came to make, and finally believe, the surprising measurements on which a radical new view of the universe depends. And it is not the simple, elegant picture that certain theorists would have us think. — Michael Riordan

Economist

This is an insider's account of how the work was done. Besides giving an up-to-the-minute account of the science, Mr Kirshner lets us share vicariously in the thrill of discovery. The science involves supernovae-vast explosions of stars.

Michael Riordan - New York Times Book Review

The Extravagant Universe is a gripping story of how two competing groups of scientists came to make, and finally believe, the surprising measurements on which a radical new view of the universe depends.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

"This is a wonderful book on one of the hottest topics in science, written by one of the main contributors to the breakthrough. It presents a history of modern cosmology written in a very lively style with amusing personal stories that make the reading easy and entertaining." (Bohdan Paczynski, Princeton University)

'"This book describes a remarkable era in cosmology. Over the last three years several lines of evidence have gelled into a consistent but—to most of us—unexpected picture of what our universe consists of and how it is expanding. Told by a key participant, the story will be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in astronomy or cosmology, or even merely a general curiosity about science." (Martin Rees, author of Our Cosmic Habitat)