Space at the Speed of Light

Space at the Speed of Light

Preface

The wondrous thing about science is that nobody knows the right answer. This is not how we are taught science as children, though. In the classroom, theories are presented as hard facts that have always been understood in that way. Fortunately, the reality is far more creative: being a scientist is like fitting in the pieces of an ever-changing jigsaw puzzle for which we’ve lost the lid. The work of so many people over decades, even centuries, slowly builds a picture of our current best understanding. Although some areas of science still have the odd piece missing, some others have giant gaps for which we currently don’t have the tools, mathematics, or data even to glimpse what shape the pieces are.

Science is all about posing the questions to which nobody yet knows the answers. Convincing people there is a “right” answer—based on evidence and facts you, your colleagues, and your predecessors have collected to build a theory of the previously unexplained—is the crucial bit. This means that science moves quickly, with theories maturing and sometimes even boomeranging as more evidence comes to light.

The theories and facts outlined in this book offer a history of ten big questions about space and how science currently answers them. They are all considered successes now, but who knows how they shall be perceived in fifty years. Perhaps our current theory of dark matter will be scoffed at by future generations, akin to our current disbelief that learned minds once thought the Earth was at the center of the universe or that the atom could not be split. Yet, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t treasure this knowledge now and the wonders of our world that it lays bare.

The chapters in this book cover the essentials behind the evolution of some of the most successful theories that describe the weird and wonderful objects in space, either for those who want new glimpses into its depths or have no prior knowledge of the secrets it contains. Reading this book will take you on a tour of the universe—from its beginnings in the big bang to the elusiveness of dark matter to a thoughtful consideration of whether life exists beyond our planet. If we linger when we reach black holes, that’s because they are where my heart truly lies. My own scientific jigsaw puzzle, which I attempt while sat at my desk in the astrophysics department in Oxford, is helping to understand how these enigmas affect the galaxies they reside in.

We end with what we still don’t know: the biggest question of all and one we will never be certain we’ve answered wholly or correctly. But, as an astronomer, this is the most exciting quest of all—pushing the boundaries of our knowledge, bit by bit, to uncover a fuller picture of the universe and our place within it. My hope is that this book will give you glimpses of that, as yet incomplete, masterpiece.