ESHS/HSS Annual Meeting

Historical Origin of the Current Crisis in Cosmology

• In Event: Intersections between History and Philosophy of Physics

English Abstract

The unique theoretical and technological advances of the physical sciences in the 20th century resulted in revolutionary developments to the fields of astronomy and cosmology. In the post-war scenario, a new cosmological model was consolidated in the Big Bang Theory; all the while, the advent of relativistic astrophysics and radioastronomy allowed for more refined measurements and exciting astronomical discoveries, including what became known as the dark sectors of the universe, which were incorporated into the standard model of cosmology, also known as Lambda-CDM.
Historically, the growth of large observational surveys and new computational tools encouraged the formation of international research groups that often brought together astronomers and cosmologists, fostering shared practices and common goals. However, in the last decade, theoretical predictions and observational data started to diverge, creating a (welcomed?) tension in the measurement of important cosmological parameters. This discordant scenario has been dubbed the Crisis in Cosmology.
In this work, we will explore the origin of this crisis, retracing the branching of methodological approaches to cosmological research by different work groups and trying to understand when and how their results come to diverge in recent years. What other differences besides methodology do these subcommunities have? Is this scenario a fitting example of Kuhn’s accumulation of anomalies and subsequential crises that lead to a paradigm shift? Understanding these dynamics may offer insight into how diverse voices participate in the construction of cosmological knowledge and how such perspectives can influence the future of the field.

Author

• Carla Almeida, Universidade Fedral da Bahia (UFBA), Brazil