Dark Energy From The Ground Up: Make Way For BigBOSS
Thursday, August 20, 2009 - 09:21
in Physics & Chemistry
Several ways have been proposed to examine dark energy, in hopes of finding out just what it is. One of them, “supernovae” for short, certainly works: it’s how dark energy was discovered in the first place. Other independent techniques, such as weak gravitational lensing and baryon acoustic oscillation, also promise great power but are as yet unproven. To measure the expansion history of the universe, the design chosen for the Joint Dark Energy mission will use three techniques -- supernovae, weak lensing, and baryon acoustic oscillation -- but it will emphasize baryon acoustic oscillation. Good science, but many scientists think it can be done better, cheaper, and more dependably from the ground -- by BigBOSS.