Does Dark Energy Change Over Time?

The concept of dark energy has infatuated space scientists for decades. Now, researchers from Huntsville’s University of Alabama have uncovered electrifying new insight into the mysterious form of energy that saturates the entire cosmos.

Published in the Monthly Notices of The Royal Astronomical Society, the new study claims that dark energy has retained the same characteristics for billions of years. It’s an exciting discovery, and offers space scientists new insight into the mysterious force that pushes space apart at a faster rate than gravity pulls matter together.

Observing ‘cosmic rulers’

Using complex equations and next generation technology, astronomers have compared the sizes of various different galaxy clusters to determine expansion rates. As the largest structures in the universe held together by gravity, these ‘cosmic rulers’ offer plenty of scope for dark energy exploration.

If the rates increased across cosmic time, the team concluded that the relative size of the galaxy would also have changed. However, this phenomenon wasn’t observed. The lack of expansion has led scientists to believe that for billions of years, dark energy has essentially stayed the same.

The ‘Russian Doll’ effect

So how did space scientists manage to confirm their theory that cosmological parameters remain unchanged? The discovery was all thanks to NASA’s advanced X-ray Chandra telescope. Observing 300 clusters, the team studied galaxy groups with distances ranging from 760 million to 8.7 billion light-years. They pegged it the ‘Russian Doll’ approach as they envisioned the galaxies neatly stacking into one another.

With the help of Chandra, researchers are now asserting that dark energy is a cosmological constant that remains unchanged, regardless of how many years slip by. This theory was first proposed by Einstein, and is equivalent to the energy of empty space.

Telescopes drastically heighten outer space observations, but here on Earth medical scientists are also making miraculous discoveries that enhance and improve the functionality of the human eye. ‘A Dosing System for Clearer Vision’ looks at a recent development from Bronkhorst UK, and how collaboration with a contact lenses manufacturer has improved the dosing of cleaning solution within its assembly process. The development has significantly increased the manufacturer’s productivity, while simultaneously tightening process parameters and increasing quality.