Olbers' paradox
[ohl-berz]
- the paradox that if the universe consisted of an infinite number of stars equally distributed through space, then every line of sight would come from a star and the night sky would glow uniformly, which is observationally not true.
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Origin of Olbers' paradox
First recorded in 1950–55; after H.W.M. Olbers
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Word Origin and History for olbers' paradox
Olbers' paradox
"if stars are uniformly distributed through the sky, their number should counterbalance their faintness and the night sky should be as bright as the day;" named for German astronomer H.W.M. Olbers (1758-1840), who propounded it in 1826.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper