Roodverschuiven

Roodverschuiven, often translated as redshift, is a phenomenon observed in astronomy where electromagnetic radiation from an object undergoes an increase in wavelength. This means that the light emitted by the object is shifted towards the red end of the electromagnetic spectrum. The primary cause of roodverschuiven in the context of astronomical objects is the Doppler effect, which describes the change in frequency or wavelength of a wave in relation to an observer who is moving relative to the wave source.

When an object emitting light is moving away from an observer, the wavelengths of the light it emits are stretched, causing them to appear longer, hence the term roodverschuiven. Conversely, if an object is moving towards an observer, its light is compressed to shorter wavelengths, a phenomenon known as blueshift. The magnitude of the roodverschuiven is directly proportional to the object's radial velocity – its speed directly away from or towards the observer.

The discovery and understanding of roodverschuiven have been instrumental in shaping our understanding of the universe. In the early 20th century, Edwin Hubble's observations of distant galaxies revealed that they were all exhibiting roodverschuiven, and that the farther away a galaxy was, the greater its roodverschuiven. This led to the formulation of Hubble's Law, which provides key evidence for the expansion of the universe. Measuring roodverschuiven allows astronomers to determine the distances to galaxies and to study the large-scale structure and evolution of the cosmos. It is a fundamental tool in cosmology.