Luminet J.-P. The Wraparound Universe

Wellesley: AK Peters, Ltd., 2003. - 323p.What shape is the universe? Is it curved and closed in on itself? Is it expanding? Where is it headed? Could space be wrapped around itself, such that it produces ghost images of faraway galaxies? Such are the questions posed by Jean-Pierre Luminet in The Wraparound Universe, which he then addresses in clear and accessible language. An expert in black holes and the big bang, he leads us on a voyage through the surprising byways of space-time, where possible topologies of the universe, explorations of the infinite, and cosmic mirages combine their mysterious traits and unlock the imagination. The Wraparound Universe is a general-audience book about the overall topology or shape of the universe. The central question addressed is whether it is possible that the universe is wrapped around in an interesting way, and what impact this would have on astronomical observations and our understanding of cosmology. Along the way many of the general features and much of the history of the modern picture of cosmology are discussed.Preface to the English Edition
Reading GuideThe Shape of SpaceThe Universal Mollusk
The Size of Space
The Hall of Mirrors
The Four Scales of Geometry
Absolute or Relative Space?
Celestial Mirages
Black Hole
Foam, Strings, and Loops
From Relativity to the Big Bang
What is the Curvature of the Universe?
Open or Closed?
The Knowledge of Places
From the Cylinder to the Pretzel
Fascinating Shapes
Topology and Relativity
Small, Strange Universes
Topological Mirage
Hunting for Ghosts
Midnight Suns
Cosmic Crystallography
Circles in the Sky
Inflation, the Infinite, and the Folds
MayaFolds in the UniverseA Brief History of Space
The Edge Paradox
The Dark Night Paradox
Non-Euclidean Geometries
Cosmos and Logos
Cosmic Questions
Expansion and the Infinite
Galaxies in Flight
The Rate of Expansion
The Age of the Universe
Astronomical Distances
Cosmic Mathematics
Cosmic Repulsion
Dark Matter
The Cosmic Microwave Background
Is the Universe Flat?
Symmetry
Polyhedra
The Classification of Surfaces
The Classification of Three-Dimensional Spaces
Topos and Cosmos
Afterword: Listening to the Cosmic Drum