Cosmological Scale Of The Universe

When the average person hears the terms dark matter or dark energy, they probably do not truly appreciate the complexity and scope of the concepts involved. The terms dark matter and dark energy tend to obscure the high level of uncertainty that currently plagues researchers involved in these areas of study. However, before people can even begin to really understand these ideas, they must first acquire a basic understanding of the nature and scope of the universe, at least as much is possible for the human mind. The cosmological scale of the universe is so much larger than we as human beings can hope to comprehend in an intuitive manner. To gain an appreciation of this scale, consider the following, the average human being is about 1.7 m

The diameter of our Sun, into which about one million Earths could fit, is about 1,400,000 km, or about 1.4x109 m (Huang, 2010). The largest star currently known to humans, VY Canis Majoris, has a diameter of about 3 billion kilometers, or about 3x1012 m (Huang, 2010). The Oort cloud of our solar system, the barrier of debris at the extreme limit of our Sun’s gravitational influence, is believed to have an outer diameter of about 1.5 trillion kilometers, or about 1.5x1015 m, this is also about 0.15 light years (Huang, 2010). The light year is a unit of measure based on how far light travels in one year, in a vacuum. The nearest star to our solar system, Proxima Centauri, is about 4.3 light years away, or about 4.5x1016 m (Huang, 2010). The Milky Way Galaxy, our home galaxy, is believed to have a diameter of about 120,000 light years, or 1.2x1021 m (Huang, 2010). The Local Galactic Supercluster of galaxies is believed to have a diameter of about 150,000,000 light years, or about 1.5x1024 m (Huang, 2010). The diameter of the observable universe is believed to be about 14 billion light years, actually

Consider the fact that there even is a rigorous debate about such concepts. This indicates that our current understanding of the nature of the universe is incorrect. Namely, our current explanations of physics on a cosmological scale, specifically pertaining to gravity, are somehow incomplete and/or lacking. A more complete understanding of these concepts will either expose erroneous concepts currently held as truth, or add to humanity’s current understanding of the nature of the cosmos, or both. Along the way, the scientific process of research and investigation will yield insights that will undoubtedly have unforeseeable influences on our society. Questions will likely be addressed in disciplines ranging from philosophy and religion, i.e., the nature of the origins of the universe and of existence, all the way to modern computing and optics technology, e.g., the new technologies being developed to make research into these areas of cosmology and astronomy possible that will likely benefit society at large through technological innovation and advancement. For these reasons alone, it is clear that there is much to be gained from research into dark matter and energy. Further, an understanding of the nature of the universe from a cosmological perspective requires an in depth analysis of the collective nature of dark matter and dark energy. The following analysis will provide a look into the current research of these subjects