Einstein's Telescope: The Hunt for Dark Matter and Dark Energy in the Universe (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "We thought we were so close..." (more)
Key Phrases: cosmic expansion, dark matter web, lensing power, Big Bang, Milky Way, Color Illustration (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

There is far more to the universe than meets the eye: invisible dark matter and dark energy constitute the vast bulk of the cosmos and are responsible for its accelerating expansion. Gates, assistant director of the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, explores the science of these invisible phenomena and the questions they raise about the universe's origins, its present and its future. Gates explains how scientists discovered the existence of dark matter and their theories about the nature of the particles (with names like WIMPs) that form it. Astrophysicists have found tools to measure the invisible mass: the stars themselves. Drawing on Einstein's theory of general relativity, scientists can see dark matter using gravitational lensing—by measuring the deflection of light around a cosmic object, they can measure the object's mass. Presenting complicated topics concisely and clearly, Gates explains what we know about the universe, what scientists wish they knew, and what's at stake—the fate of the universe itself. 8 pages of color and 40 b&w illus. (Feb.)
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Review

Cogent review of this intriguing topic.
(Marcia Bartusiak -Washington Post )

In this highly informative book, Gates offers clear, accessible explanations of how gravitational lensing can…solve the [universe's] biggest mysteries.
(Amanda Gefter -New Scientist )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co.; 1 edition (February 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393062384
• ISBN-13: 978-0393062380
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #37,026 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gee, Dad, It's Really Dark Out There., March 19, 2009

By	J. Moran (Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In 1970 many physicists and cosmologists thought that we would soon know all the basic physical principles governing the universe. The Big Bang was largely confirmed by cosmic background radiation and we knew about expansion. Quantum mechanics ruled the small while the large was the domain of relativity. The two theories weren't linked yet, but it was merely a matter of a little more time and work. Success would bring an explanation unifying the four fundamental physical forces of the universe: Electromagnetism, the strong force (binding protons and neutrons together in atomic nuclei), the weak force (governing certain kinds of particle decay) and gravity. Surely the "theory of everything" was not far off.

Wrong. Observations in 1970 revealed that gravitational motions of gas clouds in the Andromeda galaxy were occurring at speeds far greater than the entire observed mass of that galaxy could account for. Similar problems detected in the 1930's involving motions of entire galaxies had long been disregarded. Soon other observations confirmed that so-called "ordinary matter" is insufficient to account for observed gravitational effects in the cosmos. Thus the universe must contain huge amounts of "dark matter," that we cannot observe and the composition of which we do not know (it is not made of the particles that constitute ordinary matter).

Then in 1998 reports of observations of distant supernovae revealed that the expansion of the universe was not slowing, as would be expected from long-term effects of gravity, but was instead accelerating. Something was overcoming the gravitational power of all of the matter in the universe. The acceleration, moreover, has not been present from the Big Bang on. For billions of years the speed of expansion slowed. Then, about 5 billion years ago, acceleration began. Obviously energy--a lot of it--- was required to explain these phenomena. This is "dark energy." We cannot detect it and currently know almost nothing about it.

Today scientists believe that 5% of the universe consists of "ordinary" [observable] matter, 23% of "dark" matter and 72% of "dark energy." So in about 40 years we have gone from thinking that we knew almost everything about the essentials of cosmology to actually knowing something about only 5% of the universe, very little about an additional 23% and almost nothing about 72% of it.

But author Gates (herself a theoretical physicist by training) is energized rather than discouraged. In this book she discusses fully the problems noted above (and more), explains their significance and outlines in detail the methods that are being used or planned to attack them. The book's title comes from one of the major investigational tools: Use of relativistic spacetime itself as an observational device. General relativity teaches that the presence of mass warps spacetime. As light travels through the universe it follows a curved path through these "dimples" in spacetime. Because these warps bend light, it is as if a giant lens has been dropped into space, magnifying and displacing light from more distant sources behind it. When Earth is aligned with such a "lens," it allows us to detect and analyse vastly more distant light sources otherwise not observable. This is useful in searching for dark matter because it allows "maps" to be made showing where dark matter exists in distant sources. Gates does an outstanding job of describing this and other significant techniques for making these inquiries, noting the strengths and weaknesses of each method in investigating certain types of phenomena. The use of different techniques should permit the capture of disparate forms of data and lead, we hope, to detection and analysis of dark matter and dark energy.

This is an exciting time for cosmology and physics. The results of these inquiries will, at the least, radically change our view of the cosmos. Depending on results, it may be necessary to modify Einstein's theory of general relativity to account for the observed actions of gravity in the universe. Gates is also quite good at conveying the excitement now animating these scientific fields. Her writing is clear and readable, if seldom compelling. Overall this book is recommended for anyone interested in today's leading cosmological puzzles.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Space Science, June 4, 2009

By	David Nichols "Island Dave" (North Carolina, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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Astrophysicist Evalyn Gates brings the world of gravitational lensing and the search for the unknown constituents of the Universe to the reader in her book Einstein's Telescope. Gates has spent many years in this search, and this book is an excellent introduction and advanced discussion, laying the foundation for the work she (and others) will do over the next decade to unmask some of the great mysteries in cosmology and astrophysics.

Gates introduces a brief history of how scientists came to understand that dark matter and dark energy had to be part of our Universe in order to explain a few basic observations. Once she has offered the reader a framework for why we need to look more deeply at the way our Universe appears, Gates explains just what causes the "Einstein's Telescope" effect. This fascinating technique involves gravitational lensing of distant objects by massive objects sitting closer to the Earth. Often, the lenses are clusters of galaxies, and through the process of lensing more distant galaxies, we can learn how much mass is acting on the light of the distant sources, giving us insight into where dark matter may reside and exactly how it interacts with ordinary mass.

The book explains various theories of dark matter, primarily MACHOs and WIMPs, offers glimpses at the even more mysterious dark energy, for which there are no shortage of wild theories, and eventually goes deep into the cosmic web that may hold clues to the earliest formation of galaxies.

Later parts of the book, which may well be the strongest in what is a very solid presentation, describe the multiple experiments ongoing and various theories currently being formulated. Gates explains how these new techniques and new opportunities may shed light on our understanding of the Universe, its beginnings, and its evolution. Anyone who wants to understand the amazing findings that have begun to trickle out of this astrophysical work (and which will continue to become available over the next decade or two) will find strong explanations by Gates herein. This section alone makes the entire book worth reading for me.

Gates is an excellent writer who refuses to waste the reader's time. She has a solid grasp of her subject, and better, is highly successful at making the complex scientific concepts approachable by most any reader. Tons of great cutting-edge science is in store for a reader of this book, and those with a strong knowledge of cosmology and astronomy can still find much to learn and enjoy in Telescope. A handful of excellent images and illustrations are included in the hardback edition which offer the reader tantilizing, beautiful references to Gates' material, including real photographs of some fantastic shots of gravitation lensing.

For any science reader, and most especially those who enjoy space sciences, this book is highly recommended as a solid effort to update the reader's understanding of current astrophysical efforts and approaches to this fascinating field. While much of the science is complex, the style makes it easy to digest, without watering down the concepts. Four stars.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, April 14, 2009

By	BlueBerry "Cereal" (Salt Lake City) - See all my reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and have found it to be one of the more readable books in the category of popular astrophysics. Evalyn Gates has succeeded in creating a fascinating literary exploration of the subject of the book - mainly a description of the phenomenon known as gravitational lensing and a detailed account of what how it can be used to gain insight into dark matter and subsequently the construction of the universe. I was peripherally aware of the concept of gravitational lensing, but now I have a much more vivid mental image of how the universe looks from a spacetime distortion stand point. Having read quite a few astrophysics and cosmology books, I especially appreciated the omission of a rehashing of the entire history of physics. The author includes only what is necessary for the understanding of the subjects. Additionally, there is no math, but there is an explanation of Einstein's equation of how the spacetime curvature relates to the distribution of matter and energy which will actually make you feel smarter. If you are considering buying this book, don't worry, you'll like it!