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Gravity Probe B

Testing Einstein's Universe

Special & General Relativity Questions and Answers

How do you reconcile the universe not having an expansion center with observations that galaxies are moving away from us?

You can see this for yourself by looking at the surface of a balloon speckled with 'galaxies'. As you inflate the balloon, every spot moves away from every other spot and if you were on one of these you would see yourself at the center of the expansion. But in fact, the center of the expansion is at the center of the balloon, not on the surface of the balloon. An analogous effect happens in general relativity when considering the universe produced by a Big Bang.


Copyright 1997 Dr. Sten Odenwald Return to Special & General Relativity Questions and Answers page.