Olbers' paradox

American

[ohl-berz] / ˈoʊl bərz /

noun

Astronomy.

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.

Etymology

Origin of Olbers' paradox

First recorded in 1950–55; after H.W.M. Olbers

Example Sentences

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Olbers' paradox

People have been asking why space is dark despite being filled with stars for so long that this question has a special name – Olbers’ paradox.

From Scientific American ● Oct. 19, 2023

Let’s take a moment to consider everyone’s favorite null result: Olbers’ paradox.

From Scientific American ● Dec. 22, 2017

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023