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[82.08] What if the Vacuum Energy Density Depends on the Curvature of Space within the Horizon?

C. O. Bryja (CCSF)

I describe and explore the implications of a simple hypothesis that the present vacuum energy density depends directly on the ratio of the Hubble length to the universe-wide radius of curvature. If this were true, then the vacuum energy density would have increased steadily from the end of cosmic inflation until shortly before the present epoch, but it would have begun to decrease after it recently became dominant and triggered the present accelerating expansion. The most pertinent prediction of this hypothesis is that the present value of the density parameter differs from 1 by an amount that is currently greater than at any other era in the history of the universe from the early beginning of inflation to perhaps all future eras.

The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: cbryja@ccsf.edu

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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35#5
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.