Ricci focusing, shearing, and the expansion rate in an almost homogeneous Universe

TL;DR

This paper investigates how inhomogeneities in the universe can bias cosmological measurements, showing effects of a few percent on redshift-distance relations, which are crucial for precise parameter estimation.

Contribution

It quantifies the impact of inhomogeneities on optical properties and redshift-distance relations using toy models that mimic the real universe.

Findings

Inhomogeneities cause a bias of a few percent in cosmological measurements.

The models are statistically homogeneous on large scales.

Results highlight the importance of accounting for inhomogeneities in cosmology.

Abstract

The Universe is inhomogeneous, and yet it seems to be incredibly well-characterised by a homogeneous relativistic model. One of the current challenges is to accurately characterise the properties of such a model. In this paper we explore how inhomogeneities may affect the overall optical properties of the Universe by quantifying how they can bias the redshift-distance relation in a number of toy models that mimic the real Universe. The models that we explore are statistically homogeneous on large scales. We find that the effect of inhomogeneities is of order of a few percent, which can be quite important in precise estimation of cosmological parameters. We discuss what lessons can be learned to help us tackle a more realistic inhomogeneous universe.