Cosmologists Can’t Agree on the Hubble Constant

The Hubble constant H₀ tells us the speed at which galaxies are receding from us as the Universe expands. Over the past five years, cosmologists have recognized that there is a discrepancy between different measurements of this fundamental parameter. Three speakers in a session at the April Meeting of the American Physical Society in Columbus, Ohio, discussed the status of this “crisis in cosmology.” The field has now accepted that the problem is real, and some researchers are optimistic that it could lead to important discoveries.