http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/12/19/u...ects/index.html
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Its amazing how fast our technology has advanced, to allow us to see that far. Sometime soon, we'll see even further. Possibly discovering if the universe has an end.
But this just plain annoys me! Its discoveries like this that make me depressed that I wont be around to see us actually physically explore and travel to these reaches of space. Its discoveries like this that I wont be around in 100 years to see even more, but better discoveries like this! :(
Those objects most likely do not exit anymore. They did 13 billion years ago.Quote:
Originally Posted by ExoByte
Things like this make me believe the universe could be round and not flat. I mean, how did we end up 13 billion years ahead of the light that came off those objects?
I never said they existed, but new things could be created in their place possibly.
Light does not travel instantaneously. In space, with no gravity, things can just float on. Our galaxy itself is likely moving at an incredible speed. Everything is likely just drifiting through space. We have no idea how long the universe has existed, and so over a long time we could've just drifted apart, to the point where it takes the light 13 billion years to reach our eyes. It doesnt really help explain wether the universe is round, flat or infinite. Be it flat, or round, or infinite, 13 billion light years is still 13 billion light years.
What I am saying is... Say the big bang just occured. Light is being given off from that and spreading out in the three dimensional space. Light is given off from point A, and goes out in every direction, traveling at, well, the speed of light. The only way to view that exact light given off from point A would be to get in front of it, so it hits you. So what I was pretty much saying is, how can we see things that existed 13 billion light years ago. Right now, science claims nothing can travel faster then the speed of light. We would have had to been in the big bang, and then gotten ahead of the light that came from it somehow to actually view it happening. Same goes with the objects that existed 13 billion years ago.Quote:
Originally Posted by ExoByte
I understand that from the moment of the big bang, when things travel apart, their relative velocities can "lag" light toward us, but even then, we would only be able to see far back, because the light from the beginning of the universe, should be long gone and behind us, if it is flat ;)
Not necissarily. The light travels for 13 billion years to reach our eyes. So say a star was created and it was 10 billion light years away. We would not see that star in the sky for a full 10 billion years. Then we would view it. Say the star only had a lifespan of 10 billion years as well. It gave off 10 billion years worth of light that has to travel to us, so we'll still see the star for a 10 billion years to come, even if its long gone.Quote:
I understand that from the moment of the big bang, when things travel apart, their relative velocities can "lag" light toward us, but even then, we would only be able to see far back, because the light from the beginning of the universe, should be long gone and behind us, if it is flat[/b]
If the universe is flat, the objects could've still been pushed out on a flat-plane, and still have light that is yet to reach us. We for example be in the center of this flat-plane (not saying we are, just using it as an example here) and the objects could be at the edges.
It's an unvalidated theory that the universe as a shape. A lot of popular science magazines focus on the idea that the universe could be spherical or whatnot to gain publicity. The current accepted the universe is just a 3-dimensional expanse of space.
The universe is expanding at faster than the speed of light, something to do with the Hubble constant over 70, I don't remember exactly, so unless you travel faster than light, you won't reach the edge of the universe.