Royal Institution Public Talk - The Universe in a box

A mesmerising tapestry of cosmic events stretching over the past 13.8 billion years and even further into the future have shaped the existence we have come to know. But are secrets masked in the future of the universe? And how are scientists able to study the cosmos in all its glory, past, present and future?

Join Professor of Cosmology and science communicator Andrew Pontzen as he uncovers how intricate computer codes have unlocked our understanding of the universe – from galaxies and black holes to the very essence of matter itself. Simulations have also revolutionised our understanding of the cosmos, shedding new light on the universe’s multifaceted complexities. They are the windows through which we peer into the hidden dimensions of space, guiding us through a journey from the phenomenon of cosmic redshift, which unveiled the universe’s accelerating expansion, to the ethereal concept of dark matter, a substance that traverses solid rock as if it were a ghostly apparition.