Astronomers have long been puzzled by the discrepancy in the universe's expansion rate, known as the Hubble tension, which threatens the standard cosmological model.
Proposing a new idea, a study suggests that besides expanding, the universe could be spinning slowly, providing a potential resolution to the Hubble tension.
The Hubble constant, used to measure the expansion rate, is derived from different methods, leading to conflicting values of around 73 and 67 kilometers per second per megaparsec.
Recent research using the Hubble Space Telescope favored the higher expansion rate but didn't align with Planck CMB data, indicating a significant discrepancy.
To reconcile this conflict, a study by István Szapudi and team introduces a model of a rotating universe that surprisingly addresses the Hubble tension without contradicting existing observations.
The proposed universe rotation, while seemingly unconventional, has historical precedents and aligns with observations of spinning celestial bodies like stars and galaxies.
The model suggests that even a slow universal spin, completing one rotation every 500 billion years, could impact the cosmos' expansion behavior, potentially explaining the conflicting measurements.
The rotation hypothesis offers a fresh perspective on the universe's dynamics and could lead to new insights into fundamental aspects of space and time.
Future research aims to validate the rotating universe concept through computer modeling and observational data, highlighting the scientific community's readiness to adapt theories based on empirical evidence.
This study underscores the ever-evolving nature of scientific understanding, exemplified by the potential paradigm shift towards acknowledging a slowly rotating universe.