Related papers: Is the Universe Flat?
We establish a new no-go theorem for cosmology: spatially flat ($k=0$) and open ($k=-1$) Friedmann--Robertson--Walker (FRW) non-static spacetimes cannot be simultaneously nonsingular, geodesically complete, and consistent with the averaged…
In general relativity, a gravitational horizon (more commonly known as the "apparent horizon") is an imaginary surface beyond which all null geodesics recede from the observer. The Universe has an apparent (gravitational) horizon, but…
The semi-classical approach to the quantum geometrodynamical model is used for the description of the properties of the universe on extremely small spacetime scales. Quantum theory for a homogeneous, isotropic and closed universe is…
It has been known for some time that the usual inference drawn from the observed near-flatness of the large-scale Universe - namely the existence of a cosmological "flatness problem", which is then taken as a partial, but key motivation for…
Recent observational indications of an accelerating universe enhance the interest in studying models with a cosmological constant. We investigate cosmological expansion (FRW metric) with $\Lambda>0$ for a general linear equation of state…
Is the universe finite or infinite, and what shape does it have? These fundamental questions, of which relatively little is known, are typically studied within the context of the standard model of cosmology where the universe is assumed to…
The question of determining the spatial geometry of the Universe is of greater relevance than ever, as precision cosmology promises to verify inflationary predictions about the curvature of the Universe. We revisit the question of what can…
In a Universe with a detectable nontrivial spatial topology the last scattering surface contains pairs of matching circles with the same distribution of temperature fluctuations --- the so-called circles-in-the-sky. Searches undertaken for…
In the $R+\alpha R^2$ gravity theory, we show that if freely propagating massless particles have an almost isotropic distribution, then the spacetime is almost Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW). This extends the result proved recently in…
The recent announcement from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) satellite experiment combined with other recent advances in observational cosmology verifies key components of the standard cosmological model. However, we argue…
An important, and potentially detectable, signature of a non-trivial topology for the universe is the presence of so called circles-in-the-sky in the cosmic microwave background (CMB). Recent searches, confined to antipodal and nearly…
Recent observations suggest that the ratio of the total density to the critical density of the universe, $\Omega_0$, is likely to be very close to one, with a significant proportion of this energy being in the form of a dark component with…
With the recent measurements of temperature and polarization anisotropies in the microwave background by WMAP, we have entered a new era of precision cosmology, with the cosmological parameters of a Standard Cosmological Model determined to…
[Abridged] In a Universe with a detectable nontrivial spatial topology the last scattering surface contains pairs of matching circles with the same distribution of temperature fluctuations - the so-called circles-in-the-sky. Searches for…
Cosmology is nowadays going through a true revolution in the quantity and quality of observations that are capable of providing crucial information about the origin and evolution of the universe. In the first years of the next millenium we…
We study here what it means for the Universe to be nearly flat, as opposed to exactly flat. We give three definitions of nearly flat, based on density, geometry and dynamics; all three definitions are equivalent and depend on a single…
The blackbody radiation left over from the Big Bang has been transformed by the expansion of the Universe into the nearly isotropic 2.73K Cosmic Microwave Background. Tiny inhomogeneities in the early Universe left their imprint on the…
A fundamental assumption in the standard model of cosmology is that the Universe is isotropic on large scales. Breaking this assumption leads to a set of solutions to Einstein's field equations, known as Bianchi cosmologies, only a subset…
The theory of inflation provides an elegant explanation for the nearly flat universe observed today, which represents one of the pillars of the standard cosmological model. However, recent studies have reported some deviations from a flat…
Recent late-Universe observations suggest an open Universe. If confirmed, such a departure from spatial flatness would carry profound implications for our understanding of cosmic inflation and the ultimate fate of the Universe. Motivated by…