Re: distant / old Massive Structure

From: Bjoern Feuerbacher (feuerbac_at_thphys.uni-heidelberg.de)
Date: 03/09/05 

Date: Wed, 09 Mar 2005 11:06:44 +0100

George Dishman wrote:
> "Bjoern Feuerbacher" <feuerbac@thphys.uni-heidelberg.de> wrote in message
> news:d0kjcm$g4o$1@news.urz.uni-heidelberg.de...
>
>>jgreen@seol.net.au wrote:
>>
>>>MadDogR75@yahoo.com wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>>Check <http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-2005/pr-04-05.html>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>Anyone got any spare nails? I,ve seen so many go into the BB coffin, it
>>>would be unlikely. Here is another terminal illness! --
>>
>>Only to people like you, with severe reading comprehension problems.
>
>
> Bjoern, I think you are perhaps being a bit unfair
> this time. The fault lies more with the press release
> than Jim IMHO.
>
>
>>>--an OLD galaxy (c 10 Ga)
>>
>>Err, the article talks about a galaxy *cluster* at a *distance*
>>of 9 billion light years which looks too much developed. Not
>>about a galaxy which is 10 Ga old.
>
>
> Jim has certainly misread the release again but look
> at some other quotes from the page:
>
> "The VLT images reveal that it contains reddish and
> elliptical, i.e. old, galaxies."
>
> "The discovery of such a complex and mature
> structure so early in the history of the Universe
> is highly surprising. Indeed, until recently it
> would even have been deemed impossible."
>
> "The galaxies appear reddish and are of the elliptical
> type. They are full of old, red stars. All of this
> indicates that *these galaxies are already several
> thousand million years old.*"

I did not dispute that the press release talked about old
galaxies. I only pointed out that it does not say that a
10 Ga old galaxy was discovered.

I stand by my comment above: Jim has severe reading comprehension
problems.

> [Emphasis is theirs, not mine]
>
> Given those, I can see why Jim would reasonably think
> this would be problematic.

I do not dispute that these results are somehow problematic.
What I say is:
1) The article does not mention a 10 Ga old galaxy.
2) The results are not fatal for the Big Bang theory; they
more likely show that there are some problems with our ideas
of structure formation.

[snip]

Bye,
Bjoern

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Gravitational lensing
    ... Jim wrote: ... > also mean the gravitational lensing effect of our own galaxy and solar ... > galaxies to appear smaller in relation to the space between galaxies. ...
    (sci.physics.relativity)
  • Re: distant / old Massive Structure
    ... Jim has certainly misread the release again but look ... "The galaxies appear reddish and are of the elliptical ... formation time scales for the stellar ... populations in massive cluster galaxies." ...
    (sci.astro)