Description
The advent of sensitive high-resolution observations of the cosmic microwave background radiation and their successful interpretation in terms of the standard cosmological model has led to great confidence in this model's reality. The prevailing attitude is that we now understand the Universe and need only work out the details. In this book, Sanders traces the development and successes of Lambda-CDM, and argues that this triumphalism may be premature. The model's two major components, dark energy and dark matter, have the character of the pre-twentieth-century luminiferous aether. While there is astronomical evidence for these hypothetical fluids, their enigmatic properties call into question our assumptions of the universality of locally determined physical law. Sanders explains how modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND) is a significant challenge for cold dark matter. Overall, the message is hopeful: the field of cosmology has not become frozen, and there is much fundamental work ahead for tomorrow's cosmologists.
A critical assessment of the standard cosmological model and its main challenger, modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND).
About the Author
Robert H. Sanders is Professor Emeritus at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute of the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. He received his PhD in Astrophysics from Princeton University under the supervision of Lyman Spitzer. After working at Columbia University and the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, he moved to Europe. He spent his career studying active galactic nuclei (in particular, the Galactic Center), on the hydrodynamics of gas in galaxies and, for several decades, on the problem of the 'missing mass' in astronomical systems. His previous books are The Dark Matter Problem: A Historical Perspective (2010) and Revealing the Heart of the Galaxy: The Milky Way and Its Black Hole (2013).
Reviews
'This tightly written, sophisticated (though essentially non-mathematical) review of the status of the concordance model - a flat universe with all of the observations internally consistent - and its modest gaps form the core of the discussion. ... The discussions are clear, rich, and thought provoking. This book is well written and belongs in all college libraries.' K. L. Schick, CHOICE
'... I recommend this book. It is a good intorduction to an important topic in modern astrophysics and cosmology, accessible to the 'interested layman' but also valuable for those with more-advanced knowledge of astrophysics but with less knowledge of MOND.' Phillip Helbig, The Observatory
'... a light but advanced reading addressing the discrepancies in the standard Lambda cold dark matter ( CDM) cosmological paradigm that supports dark matter (duh, obviously) and compares it to an alternative outlook ... Thus, although it is of general interest, it gears towards those with some background in cosmology and astrophysics.' B. Ishak, Contemporary Physics
Book Information
ISBN 9781107155268
Author Robert H. Sanders
Format Hardback
Page Count 152
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 460g
Dimensions(mm) 252mm * 178mm * 12mm
A critical assessment of the standard cosmological model and its main challenger, modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND).
About the Author
Robert H. Sanders is Professor Emeritus at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute of the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. He received his PhD in Astrophysics from Princeton University under the supervision of Lyman Spitzer. After working at Columbia University and the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, he moved to Europe. He spent his career studying active galactic nuclei (in particular, the Galactic Center), on the hydrodynamics of gas in galaxies and, for several decades, on the problem of the 'missing mass' in astronomical systems. His previous books are The Dark Matter Problem: A Historical Perspective (2010) and Revealing the Heart of the Galaxy: The Milky Way and Its Black Hole (2013).
Reviews
'This tightly written, sophisticated (though essentially non-mathematical) review of the status of the concordance model - a flat universe with all of the observations internally consistent - and its modest gaps form the core of the discussion. ... The discussions are clear, rich, and thought provoking. This book is well written and belongs in all college libraries.' K. L. Schick, CHOICE
'... I recommend this book. It is a good intorduction to an important topic in modern astrophysics and cosmology, accessible to the 'interested layman' but also valuable for those with more-advanced knowledge of astrophysics but with less knowledge of MOND.' Phillip Helbig, The Observatory
'... a light but advanced reading addressing the discrepancies in the standard Lambda cold dark matter ( CDM) cosmological paradigm that supports dark matter (duh, obviously) and compares it to an alternative outlook ... Thus, although it is of general interest, it gears towards those with some background in cosmology and astrophysics.' B. Ishak, Contemporary Physics
Book Information
ISBN 9781107155268
Author Robert H. Sanders
Format Hardback
Page Count 152
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 460g
Dimensions(mm) 252mm * 178mm * 12mm
