Researchers propose a model in which the universe is 26.7 billion years old
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University of Ottawa researchers report that an alternative model, CCC+TL, matches several astronomical observations without dark matter or dark energy. It puts the universe's age at 26.7 billion years, against the standard 13.8 billion.
Researchers at the University of Ottawa say an alternative cosmological model matched several important astronomical observations. The model, called CCC+TL (covarying coupling constants plus tired light), suggests the universe could be 26.7 billion years old, nearly twice the widely accepted 13.8 billion years. It also proposes that dark matter and dark energy are not needed, because effects attributed to them could come from changes over time in fundamental physical constants.
Adjunct professor Rajendra Gupta and postdoctoral researcher Nikolaos Samaras tested the model during 2025 and 2026. They report results consistent with the abundances of light elements formed after the Big Bang, with cosmic chronometer measurements, and with the rotation curves of all 175 galaxies in the SPARC database. A supernova time dilation analysis is still under review. They also describe an initial proof of concept for the Bullet Cluster, and say more detailed work is needed.
The extra time would help explain surprisingly large, mature galaxies seen by the James Webb Space Telescope. At the redshift of cosmic dawn, the model puts the universe at about 4.6 billion years old, compared with roughly 300 million in the standard model. The team calculates early galaxies would be about 12 times larger in size and mass than standard cosmology predicts.
The telescope's GLIMPSE program could search for galaxies at redshifts above 50. Finding them would not by itself prove the model. The article says CCC+TL remains unconventional and needs independent examination, while the standard ΛCDM model still explains a broad range of observations.
