Interpreting cosmological observations in a clumpy universe

par Pierre Fleury (IAP Paris)

jeudi 11 déc. 2014, 11:00 → 12:00 Europe/Paris

Auditorium (Annecy-le-Vieux)

In the standard cosmological framework, observations are interpreted as if light propagated through a smooth, fluid-filled universe. However, the typical light beams involved in astronomical observations - such as supernovae - are extremely narrow, and thus probe the Universe at scales where the fluid description should no longer be valid. In this talk, I will explain how the clumpiness of the distribution of matter can affect light propagation through the cosmos, and thus the interpretation of our observations.