"O. Heckmann has pointed out that the non-static solutions of the field equations of the general theory of relativity with constant density do not necessarily imply a positive curvature of three-dimensional space, but that this curvature may also be negative or zero. There is no direct observational evidence for the curvature, the only directly observed data being the mean density and the expansion, which latter proves that the actual universe corresponds to the non-statical case. It is therefore clear that from the direct data of observation we can derive neither the sign nor that value of the curvature, and the question arises whether it is possible to represent the observed facts without introducing the curvature at all. Historically the term containing the "cosmological constant" λ was introduced into the field equations in order to enable us to account theoretically for the existence of a finite mean density in a static universe. It now appears that in the dynamical case this end can be reached without the introduction of λ."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Imported from EN Wikiquote
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Expansion_of_the_universe
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Expansion of the universe
68 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Expansion of the universe →
Related Quotes
"As for Hubble’s brightest star criterion, Sandage... has shown that objects in the of galaxies which Hubble believed …"
"An important new survey of the law relating red-shifts and magnitudes published in 1956 by Humason, Mayall and Sandag…"
"[I]n... 1952, Baade... announced that Hubble’s entire distance scale was in error... According to Baade, the distance…"
"At last, in 1949, the... ... was ready... Humason... succeeded in photographing the spectra of two remote galaxies in…"
"If a distant galaxy is moving relative to us, its entire is Doppler-shifted in frequency. Its s are displaced relativ…"
"All kinds of questions remain. Many have to do with cosmology. How did the universe originate? How did the galaxies b…"
"A book, too, can be a star, explosive material, capable of stirring up fresh life endlessly, a living fire to lighten…"
"Red-shifts are produced either in the nebulae, where the light originates, or in the intervening space through which …"
"All of this picture of the expansion is exciting, pleasant, coherent, well in order. But what if the s are not to be …"
"This circumstance of an expanding universe is irritating. ...To admit such possibilities seems senseless to me."