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A recent study challenges the widely accepted cosmological model that relies on dark energy to explain the accelerating expansion of the universe. The study, published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, suggests an alternative theory known as "timescape cosmology." Researchers analyzed light from 1,535 Type 1a supernovae, a key to understanding cosmic expansion.
The current model, lambda cold dark matter (ΛCDM), has suggested that dark energy accounts for about 70% of the universe's energy density, driving its expansion. However, the new findings imply that this perceived expansion may instead result from variations in how time flows in different regions of the universe.
According to David Wiltshire, a proponent of timescape cosmology, time passes slower in the dense areas of the universe, leading to the illusion of an accelerating expansion. This theory posits that a "lumpy" universe, with varying densities, could account for observations that dark energy has been unable to explain.
While the study's authors assert that dark energy may not exist, they acknowledge that additional data, expected from upcoming space missions such as the European Space Agency’s Euclid and NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, will be crucial to validate these findings. Until then, dark energy remains a pivotal part of contemporary cosmology.