Universe Is Older Than We Thought
Poster: Aron Schatz
Posted on August 7, 2006 at 12:26:46 PM
Some scientists believe that the universe is older than previously thought. This is based on new calculations from a known galaxy. It is farther than was known to be.
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The team used light, velocity, and temperature measurements to calculate the true luminosity of the two stars, which eclipse one another every five days. By comparing this intrinsic luminosity to their observed brightness, the team calculated that the galaxy lies 3.14 million light years away from us. Surprisingly, this is about half a million light years farther than previously thought. Measuring astronomical distances is not simple. Distant, bright objects, for example, can look the same as closer, dim ones. So astronomers have built a ladder-like system that starts by using several independent methods to accurately determine the distance to nearby objects. They then use these measurements to define a more distant cosmic yardstick, and so on.