cosmological constant

noun

: a constant term used in the relativistic equations for gravity to represent a repulsive force which may account in part for the rate of expansion of the universe

Examples of cosmological constant in a Sentence

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But the combination of cosmological constant and baby universes can match the data better than a scenario where baby universes don’t exist, and the scenario involving both a small cosmological constant and merging can relieve a big chunk of the Hubble tension. Discover Magazine, 25 Sep. 2024 One is that dark energy is a cosmological constant, an unchanging property of space, which would mean that the universe will continue to expand indefinitely, sweeping far-off objects forever beyond our local point of view. Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 8 Nov. 2023 The masses of the postulated dark gravitons are, roughly speaking, an integer times a constant, M, whose value is tied to the cosmological constant. Steve Nadis, WIRED, 25 Feb. 2024 But in an ironic twist, the one thing the dark dimension hypothesis cannot explain is why the cosmological constant is so staggeringly small—a puzzling fact that essentially initiated this whole line of inquiry. Steve Nadis, WIRED, 25 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cosmological constant 

Word History

First Known Use

1928, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cosmological constant was in 1928

Dictionary Entries Near cosmological constant

Cite this Entry

“Cosmological constant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cosmological%20constant. Accessed 16 Nov. 2024.

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