Quasars, Redshifts and Controversies
Encyclopedia
Quasars, Redshifts and Controversies is a 1987 book by Halton Arp
, an astronomer
famous for his Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies
(1966). Arp argued that many quasar
s with otherwise high redshift
are somehow linked to close objects such as nearby galaxies
. Arp also argued that some galaxies showed unusual redshifts, and that redshifts themselves could be quantized
.
These are controversial views which do not accord with the standard model of physical cosmology
. It also contradicts the accepted model that quasar
s are bright nuclei of very distant galaxies. Most astronomers reject Arp's interpretation of the data since the anomalous observations could be explained by perspective effects. Reportedly, some of Arp's calculations seem to be simply "bad mathematics". Arp asserts that many questions he posed to the scientific establishment are still unanswered and that his requests for more observation time have been systematically rejected.
Halton Arp
's proposal was an idea based on analyses done before the sky surveys increased the number of measured redshifts by several orders of magnitude. The idea was that the cosmological redshift might be showing evidence of periodicity which would be difficult to explain in a Hubble's Law
universe that had the feature of continuous expansion. However, most astronomers agree that the analysis suffers from poor methodology and small number statistics.
Halton Arp continues to report the existence of apparently connected objects with very different redshifts. Arp has interpreted these connections to mean that these objects are in fact physically connected. He has further hypothesized that the higher redshift objects are ejected from the lower redshift objects - which are usually active galactic nuclei (AGN)- and that the large observed redshifts of these "ejected" objects is dominated by a non-cosmological (intrinsic) component. The rest of the community regards these as chance alignments and Arp's hypothesis has very few supporters.
His work is updated in his latest book, Seeing Red: Redshifts, Cosmology and Academic Science, Aperion (August, 1998), ISBN 0-9683689-0-5.
Halton Arp
Halton Christian Arp is an American astronomer. He is known for his 1966 Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies, which catalogues many examples of interacting and merging galaxies...
, an astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
famous for his Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies
Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies
The Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies is a catalog of peculiar galaxies produced by Halton Arp. A total of 338 galaxies are presented in the atlas, which was originally published in 1966 by the California Institute of Technology....
(1966). Arp argued that many quasar
Quasar
A quasi-stellar radio source is a very energetic and distant active galactic nucleus. Quasars are extremely luminous and were first identified as being high redshift sources of electromagnetic energy, including radio waves and visible light, that were point-like, similar to stars, rather than...
s with otherwise high redshift
Redshift
In physics , redshift happens when light seen coming from an object is proportionally increased in wavelength, or shifted to the red end of the spectrum...
are somehow linked to close objects such as nearby galaxies
Galaxy
A galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and an important but poorly understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter. The word galaxy is derived from the Greek galaxias , literally "milky", a...
. Arp also argued that some galaxies showed unusual redshifts, and that redshifts themselves could be quantized
Redshift quantization
Redshift quantization is the hypothesis that the redshifts of cosmologically distant objects tend to cluster around multiples of some particular value...
.
These are controversial views which do not accord with the standard model of physical cosmology
Physical cosmology
Physical cosmology, as a branch of astronomy, is the study of the largest-scale structures and dynamics of the universe and is concerned with fundamental questions about its formation and evolution. For most of human history, it was a branch of metaphysics and religion...
. It also contradicts the accepted model that quasar
Quasar
A quasi-stellar radio source is a very energetic and distant active galactic nucleus. Quasars are extremely luminous and were first identified as being high redshift sources of electromagnetic energy, including radio waves and visible light, that were point-like, similar to stars, rather than...
s are bright nuclei of very distant galaxies. Most astronomers reject Arp's interpretation of the data since the anomalous observations could be explained by perspective effects. Reportedly, some of Arp's calculations seem to be simply "bad mathematics". Arp asserts that many questions he posed to the scientific establishment are still unanswered and that his requests for more observation time have been systematically rejected.
Halton Arp
Halton Arp
Halton Christian Arp is an American astronomer. He is known for his 1966 Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies, which catalogues many examples of interacting and merging galaxies...
's proposal was an idea based on analyses done before the sky surveys increased the number of measured redshifts by several orders of magnitude. The idea was that the cosmological redshift might be showing evidence of periodicity which would be difficult to explain in a Hubble's Law
Hubble's law
Hubble's law is the name for the astronomical observation in physical cosmology that: all objects observed in deep space are found to have a doppler shift observable relative velocity to Earth, and to each other; and that this doppler-shift-measured velocity, of various galaxies receding from...
universe that had the feature of continuous expansion. However, most astronomers agree that the analysis suffers from poor methodology and small number statistics.
Halton Arp continues to report the existence of apparently connected objects with very different redshifts. Arp has interpreted these connections to mean that these objects are in fact physically connected. He has further hypothesized that the higher redshift objects are ejected from the lower redshift objects - which are usually active galactic nuclei (AGN)- and that the large observed redshifts of these "ejected" objects is dominated by a non-cosmological (intrinsic) component. The rest of the community regards these as chance alignments and Arp's hypothesis has very few supporters.
His work is updated in his latest book, Seeing Red: Redshifts, Cosmology and Academic Science, Aperion (August, 1998), ISBN 0-9683689-0-5.
External links and references
- Arp, Halton C., Quasars, Redshifts and Controversies. September 1988. ISBN 0-521-36314-4
- Arp, Halton C., Seeing Red: Redshifts, Cosmology and Academic Science, Aperion (August, 1998), ISBN 0-9683689-0-5
- Rowan-Robinson, MichaelMichael Rowan-RobinsonMichael Rowan-Robinson is an astronomer and astrophysicist. He was educated at Pembroke College, Cambridge and is Professor of Astrophysics and until May 2007 was Head of the Astrophysics Group at Imperial College London. From 1981 to 1982, he gave public lectures as professor of astronomy at...
, Arp's astronomical exotica, NatureNature (journal)Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
vol. 336, (November 17, 1988)