Data from Webb Telescope Verifies ‘Hubble Tension’ Is Not Due to Hubble Telescope:

Astronomers have struggled with the speed of the universe’s expansion for many years. The Hubble constant, which varies considerably depending on how you calculate it, is a constant source of consternation for astrophysicists.

Now, a team of astronomers has more precisely calculated the expansion rate using data from the $10 billion Webb Space Telescope, which was launched in December 2021 and has been collecting data at infrared wavelengths since July 2022. The team’s research is currently available on the preprint server arXiv and is scheduled for publication in The Astrophysical Journal. Using Webb data, the team was able to reduce the noise that was present in Hubble observational data of the stars that were used to measure the constant.

A different team of scientists recalculated the Hubble constant in 2021 to determine the universe’s age with greater accuracy: 13.77 billion years.

RS Puppis, a Cepheid variable star, as seen in a Hubble image.

Webb’s observations of the Cepheids at near-infrared wavelengths meant that the newer telescope could distinguish the light from the Cepheids from the light of neighboring stars with greater ease, even though observations of the Cepheids by the Hubble Space Telescope significantly improved scientists’ estimates of the universe’s expansion. Consequently, the Hubble constant and its tension can be measured with less noise.

A different team increased the Hubble tension’s confidence level to a 5-sigma threshold in October 2022, which means that the difference between the two rates has a one-in-million chance of being a statistical fluke.

It’s conceivable that astronomers are overlooking a crucial component of the cosmological puzzle, which is also the more tantalizing hypothesis. In Riess’ blog post, he speculates that it might be “the presence of exotic dark energy, exotic dark matter, a revision to our understanding of gravity, or the presence of a unique particle or field.” Or, of course, a buildup of mistakes. However, the most recent study confirms that the tension, um, is still very tight.

The results also serve as justification for the Hubble Space Telescope, which evidently collected the best data possible given its technological limitations. However, Webb is a useful auditor of its work, and additional observations, such as those made with the Legacy Survey of Space and Time Camera at the soon-to-be-operational Rubin Observatory, may still shed light on the nature of the universe’s expansion.

More: What Is Physics’ Next Big Thing 10 Years After the Higgs Boson?

Hubble’s Universe Expansion Rate Measurements are Validated by Webb:

This diagram shows how the Hubble and Webb space telescopes can work together to pinpoint exact distances to a particular class of variable stars that are used to calibrate the universe’s expansion rate.

The authors state that because of these stars’ exceptional brightness, “precise measurements of distance have been made for over a century” using them.

Adam Riess, an astrophysicist and Nobel Laureate, explained that because stars in galaxies are condensed into a small area from our remote vantage point, we frequently lack the resolution to distinguish them from their line-of-sight neighbors.

And in order to use its visible-wavelength resolution, the Hubble space telescope has relied on Cepheid variables to measure the expansion.

“Hubble is above the dilating effects of Earth’s atmosphere, giving it better visible-wavelength resolution than any ground-based telescope. It can therefore recognize specific Cepheid variables in galaxies more than 100 million light-years away and determine the time span over which their brightness changes,” continued Riess.

Riess also noted that there was a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the rate of the universe’s expansion prior to the 1990 launch of Hubble and its subsequent measurements using Cepheid variables.

Webb validates Hubble’s findings.
In order to examine a galaxy with a known distance, the researchers first used Webb. The telescope’s calibration to the brightness of Cepheid variables was aided by this initial observation.

After that, Webb collected a total of 320 star observations while observing Cepheids in additional galaxies. The Webb data confirms the accuracy of the thirty years of Cepheid variable observations by Hubble.

“We confirmed that the earlier Hubble Space Telescope measurements were accurate, albeit noisier,” Riess continued.

Dark energy, a hypothetical form of energy that is believed to permeate all of space and is responsible for the universe’s accelerating expansion, is one of the leading candidates to explain why this tension exists.

Webb Deepens the Mysteries of the Hubble Constant Tension and Verifies the Accuracy of Hubble’s Measurements of the Universe’s Expansion Rate:

One of the key parameters for comprehending the development and ultimate destiny of the cosmos is the Hubble constant, or rate at which the universe is expanding. The value of the constant measured with a wide range of independent distance indicators and its value predicted from the big bang afterglow, however, show a persistent discrepancy known as the “Hubble Tension.”

The James Webb Space Telescope from NASA offers new tools for examining and improving some of the most compelling observational evidence for this conflict. Adam Riess, a Nobel Prize winner from the Johns Hopkins University and the Space Telescope Science Institute, discusses his most recent research using Webb observations to increase the accuracy of local Hubble constant measurements.

Have you ever had trouble seeing something that was at the edge of your field of vision? How does it say that? Why does that matter? The’signs’ astronomers are trying to read are so small that even the most powerful telescopes have trouble detecting them.

The Hubble constant, which is a number that indicates how quickly the universe is expanding, is the sign cosmologists are looking for. The stars in far-off galaxies bear our signature. The redshifts of the galaxies reveal how much the universe has expanded during that time, and the brightnesses of specific stars in those galaxies tell us how far away they are and how long it has been traveling to reach us.

It might be a sign of exotic dark matter or dark energy, it might change how we think about gravity, or it might be a sign of a special particle or field. It is crucial to repeat the measurements with higher accuracy because the more common explanation would be multiple measurement errors working together (astronomers have ruled out a single error by using independent steps).

The largest, most potent, and most intricate space science telescope ever created is the James Webb Space Telescope. In addition to looking beyond our solar system to distant planets orbiting other stars, Webb will delve into the enigmatic structures and origins of the universe and our place within it. An international project called Webb is run by NASA in conjunction with the Canadian Space Agency and the European Space Agency.

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