Let's Drop the Magic

Astronomy is full of strange and wonderful theories about matter and energy, none of which have been observed in a laboratory, or directly observed in space.

This is unfortunate, because the more magic is added to a theory, the less likely it is to be an accurate description of reality.

Among my pet hates are:

1. Black Holes
2. Neutron Stars
3. Dark Energy
4. Super-dense matter
5. Liquid Metallic Hydrogen
6. Cold Fusion

None of this has ever been directly observed.

Another irritating aspect of astronomy is the quick jump to conclusions regarding the nature of things. We see great flashes in the skies, and conclude that they must be the death of stars. We see rapid flashes and conclude that they must be rapidly spinning neutron stars. Why not keep the conclusions open? Why not list the other possibilities too?

Supernovas are associated with stars. That is known by observation. But is the star dying or being created? That is unknown. Rapid radio-flashes in the sky may be sparks and have nothing to do with rotation. Let's not jump to conclusions.

Let's keep the number of fantastic theories to a minimum. Let's stay with mechanisms that we actually know to exist, and see if we can build a cosmology on that.

Sun

By DracoLumina17 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link