New measurement brings us closer to understanding the Universe’s rate of expansion
Researchers have used gravitational wave data from a neutron star collision to provide a new measurement of the Hubble Constant, the rate at which the universe expands. This finding helps address the 'Hubble tension,' a long-standing disagreement between two existing methods of measuring cosmic expansion.
Why it matters
Resolving the Hubble tension is fundamental to understanding the physics of the early universe, dark matter, and the ultimate fate of the cosmos.
An artists conception of the GW170817 afterglow being observed by an antenna of the Very Large Array. The jet of material launched away from the merging neutron stars causes a radio glow as it interacts with the surrounding gas, which moves with time across the sky. Image Credit: Carl Knox, OzGrav, Swinburne University of Technology.
The article is a scientific report on astrophysics with no political or social bias.
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