COSMOLOGY

Pronunciation (US): (GB):

I. (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The branch of astrophysics that studies the origin and evolution and structure of the universe

Synonyms:

cosmogeny; cosmogony; cosmology

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("cosmology" is a kind of...):

astrophysics (the branch of astronomy concerned with the physical and chemical properties of celestial bodies)

Domain member category:

big-bang theory; big bang theory ((cosmology) the theory that the universe originated sometime between 10 billion and 20 billion years ago from the cataclysmic explosion of a small volume of matter at extremely high density and temperature)

nebular hypothesis ((cosmology) the theory that the solar system evolved from a hot gaseous nebula)

planetesimal hypothesis ((cosmology) the theory that the solar system was formed by the gravitational accumulation of planetesimals)

continuous creation theory; steady state theory ((cosmology) the theory that the universe maintains a constant average density with matter created to fill the void left by galaxies that are receding from each other)

big bang ((cosmology) the cosmic explosion that is hypothesized to have marked the origin of the universe)

inflation ((cosmology) a brief exponential expansion of the universe (faster than the speed of light) postulated to have occurred shortly after the big bang)

closed universe ((cosmology) a universe that is spatially closed and in which there is sufficient matter to halt the expansion that began with the big bang; the visible matter is only 10 percent of the matter required for closure but there may be large amounts of dark matter)

cosmic string; string ((cosmology) a hypothetical one-dimensional subatomic particle having a concentration of energy and the dynamic properties of a flexible loop)

CBR; CMB; CMBR; cosmic background radiation; cosmic microwave background; cosmic microwave background radiation ((cosmology) the cooled remnant of the hot big bang that fills the entire universe and can be observed today with an average temperature of about 2.725 kelvin)

Hubble's constant; Hubble's parameter; Hubble constant; Hubble parameter ((cosmology) the ratio of the speed of recession of a galaxy (due to the expansion of the universe) to its distance from the observer; the Hubble constant is not actually a constant, but is regarded as measuring the expansion rate today)

ylem ((cosmology) the original matter that (according to the big bang theory) existed before the formation of the chemical elements)

dark matter ((cosmology) a hypothetical form of matter that is believed to make up 90 percent of the universe; it is invisible (does not absorb or emit light) and does not collide with atomic particles but exerts gravitational force)

Derivation:

cosmologic; cosmological (pertaining to the branch of astronomy dealing with the origin and history and structure and dynamics of the universe)

cosmologist (an astronomer who studies the evolution and space-time relations of the universe)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The metaphysical study of the origin and nature of the universe