Dark Energy and the Cosmic Expansion

Science for the Public: Contemporary Science Issues & Innovations
December 14, 2021, Belmont Media Center, Belmont MA

Arjun Dey, Ph.D., Astronomer, NSF National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory (NOIRLab); J.S. Guggenheim Fellow, 2021; member, Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) project.

Arjun Dey's research focuses on how galaxies form and evolve, and what they can tell us about the mysterious, invisible contents of the universe: dark matter and dark energy. One of his early projects uncovered the first galaxy observed at a redshift greater than 5 (i.e., with a light travel time of more than 12.5 billion years). Dr. Dey is a core member of the Dark Energy Spectroscropic Instrument (DESI) survey project, the largest cosmic cartography project ever undertaken. DESI will provide the most precise measurements to date of the expansion history of the universe and the role of dark energy. In this program, he discusses the enigma of dark energy and the accelerating expansion of the universe, the scope of the DESI project, and the broad impact it will have on astrophysics and cosmology.

RESOURCES from DESI