Cosmic Queries – JWST’s Primordial Galaxies with Wendy Freedman

About This Episode

What do the early galaxies discovered by JWST tell us about the early universe? Neil deGrasse Tyson and comedian Matt Kirshen explore the expansion of space, dark energy, and the age of the universe with astronomer, Wendy Freedman.

What is the Hubble constant? Wendy helps us explain what it is, how Edwin Hubble got it, and why it’s important. If the universe is expanding at an increasing rate why are we calling it a constant? When did we figure out the expansion was speeding up? Discover our cosmic horizon, how we found the age of the universe, and Einstein’s biggest blunder.

What does the JWST discovery tell us about our current model for the early universe? Learn about The Dark Ages– and, no, it is not the era following the fall of the Roman Empire. How is the JWST helping challenge ideas in astronomy?

Is our universe young, middle-aged, or old? Learn about the different ages of the universe, dark energy, and how we live at an inflection point between eras. What does Wendy think about The Big Rip Theory? If time is relative, how do we reliably predict the age of the universe? What if we predicted the age of the universe from right outside a black hole?

Thanks to our Patrons Fernando Colón, Richie Mercado, Miami John, David Rivera, Matthew Reason, and Kostas Chaskis for supporting us this week.

NOTE: StarTalk+ Patrons can watch or listen to this entire episode commercial-free.