The Sky at Night - May 2008

The May edition of The Sky at Night was titled "You Just Don't Know" and was a round table discussion about the limits of human knowledge. Around the table sat Sir Patrick Moore as "Devil's Advocate" due to it being the 666th edition of the programme, Dr Chris Lintott, Dr Kate Land, and Professor Gerry Gilmore.

The assembled brain's trust of astronomers discussed the known universe and attempted to guess what was left to be understood. The viewer was reminded of the current theory of the Big Bang Model for the universe. Dark matter and dark energy were postulated as fitting current known models for the expansion of the universe.

It was said that the visible universe accounted for but a fraction of the mass of the universe and that exotic materials probably accounted for the rest. The guests then talked about how privileged astronomers were to view the universe at this time, as the past and future will not be conducive of observations.

In conclusion the guests said that the expansion of the universe was accelerating and the future will be a dark and lonely place as space, time and matter expand beyond the capabilities of visible observation.

The Sky at Night - We Just Don't Know