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YAZF t1_j6u803b wrote

We say that the universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. I understand why we say that. But is there any specific reason we think that space is the thing that's expanding INSTEAD of just everything the universe shrinking? Or are they just the same idea with a different frame of reference?

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nivlark t1_j6ud34u wrote

Expanding is "a thing space can do" according to general relativity, but there is no corresponding theoretical explanation for how or why objects would shrink. It's also not clear how objects shrinking would reproduce observations like Hubble's law - why would objects further from us be shrinking faster?

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