It can be shown that the approximate age of the universe is 1/H, where H is the Hubble constant. Taking H = 20 km/s/Mly, estimate the age of the universe, in years.
A)1500 years
B)15 thousand years
C)15 million years
D)15 billion years
E)15 trillion years

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Hubble constant H = 20 km/s/Mly can be converted to units of s^-1 to find the age of the universe. 1 Mly = 9.461 x 10^18 km, so H = 20 km/s/Mly = 20 / (9.461 x 10^18) s^-1. The age of the universe is approximately 1/H, which calculates to about 15 billion years.

It Can Be Shown That the Approximate Age of the Universe