<p>I see 2 candidates: </p>

<ul>
<li>the universe is <a href="https://www.space.com/24054-how-old-is-the-universe.html" rel="noreferrer">13.8 billion years</a> old, so should be rounded off to 14</li>
<li>the cosmic horizon is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Particle_horizon" rel="noreferrer">46 billion ly</a> away</li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-07T10:40:15.557Z
Wouldn't it be funny if it was 14 underneath those stickers that say 13? ;-)
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-07T12:57:29.760Z
or if it were 46?
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-08T08:34:27.087Z
It could have said ".... 46 billions ly away because meantime space has expanded, as is still expanding. " or something like that.
Alchimista
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-07T10:32:18.653Z
2019-05-07T10:32:18.653Z
Hobbes
<p>The Wikipedia subsection <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Misconceptions_on_its_size" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Observable Universe; Misconceptions on its size</a> shows this image of a plaque, with the caption:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>An example of the misconception that the radius of the observable universe is 13 billion light-years. This plaque appears at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Rose Center for Earth and Space</a> in New York City.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>According to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Wikipedia</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>The Rose Center for Earth and Space is a part of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The Center's complete name is The Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space. The main entrance is located on the northern side of the museum on 81st Street near Central Park West in Manhattan's Upper West Side. Completed in 2000, it includes the new Hayden Planetarium, the original of which was opened in 1935 and closed in 1997. <strong>Neil deGrasse Tyson is its first and, to date, only director.</strong></p>
</blockquote>

<p>That last line is the operative part. <strong>Dr. Tyson is a world-renowned stickler for truth and accuracy, and so a problem in is own back yard needs to be investigated.</strong></p>

<ol>
<li>What <em>exactly</em> is wrong with this plaque photographed in 2011? </li>
<li>What should it have said?</li>
<li>If something is indeed wrong, has it been fixed?</li>
</ol>

<hr>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/wj6Uz.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/wj6Uz.jpg" alt="Incorrect plaque at the Rose Center for Earth and Space, April 2011"></a></p>

<p><strong>above:</strong> <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Incorrect_plaque_at_the_Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space,_April_2011.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Incorrect plaque at the Rose Center for Earth and Space, April 2011</a></p>

<p><strong>below:</strong> Rose Center for Earth and Space <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Source</a> which <em>literally</em> contains the famous Hayden Planetarium.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/peN0V.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/peN0V.jpg" alt="Rose Center for Earth and Space which literally contains the Hayden Planetarium."></a></p>

<hr>

<p><strong>Update:</strong> I just noticed that even in 2011 the plaque had already been amended (at least) once!</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/nEMyA.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/nEMyA.jpg" alt="Correction to Rose Center for Earth and Space which literally contains the Hayden Planetarium."></a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-07T01:27:59.803Z
Due to expansion, the radius of the observable universe is 46 billion lightyears. OTOH, thete are a few options when assigning numbers to cosmological distances. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distance_measures_(cosmology)
PM 2Ring
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-07T10:04:28.143Z
I would imagine, "13 billion year old universe, the cosmic horizon is 46 billion light years away" would require an additional plaque to explain the expanding universe and perhaps be confusing to many.
userLTK
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-07T12:47:31.013Z
https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/3635/how-can-the-13-8-billion-years-old-universe-have-a-radius-of-46-billion-light-ye?noredirect=1&lq=1
ProfRob
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-08T08:31:06.387Z
Might even be semantic.  The cosmic horizon is 13 billions ly away does really implies a distance or it can be interpreted correctly?  English is not my language, but it could refer to the real situation, no signal can have travelled for a time longer than the universe age. But indeed it is quite a source of misconception. I would have interpreted it in the wrong way just few years ago, before studying a bit more on the subject.
Alchimista
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-11T15:43:35.283Z
Latest radio telescopic array numbers put date at around 12.7 billion years. That's probably too new a number to be involved in here.
Wayfaring Stranger
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-11T22:38:48.767Z
@WayfaringStranger Interesting! I want to ask a question about that number but in a quick search I can't find what you are referring to. Can you mention a link where that is described? Thanks!
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-05-11T23:41:24.097Z
@uhoh Would've sworn there was a radio telescope array in this one, but looks like it's mostly Hubble and the large Magellanic cloud. Two refs: https://www.space.com/universe-expanding-fast-new-physics.html xx https://arxiv.org/pdf/1903.07603.pdf
Wayfaring Stranger
<cosmology><observable-universe><cosmological-horizon>
What exactly is wrong with this plaque in Neil deGrasse Tyson's "back yard"? Has it been fixed?
uhoh
# What exactly is wrong with this plaque in Neil deGrasse Tyson's "back yard"? Has it been fixed?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2019-05-07)

The Wikipedia subsection [Observable Universe; Misconceptions on its size](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observable_universe#Misconceptions_on_its_size) shows this image of a plaque, with the caption:

> An example of the misconception that the radius of the observable universe is 13 billion light-years. This plaque appears at the [Rose Center for Earth and Space](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space) in New York City.

According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space):

> The Rose Center for Earth and Space is a part of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The Center's complete name is The Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space. The main entrance is located on the northern side of the museum on 81st Street near Central Park West in Manhattan's Upper West Side. Completed in 2000, it includes the new Hayden Planetarium, the original of which was opened in 1935 and closed in 1997. **Neil deGrasse Tyson is its first and, to date, only director.**

That last line is the operative part. **Dr. Tyson is a world-renowned stickler for truth and accuracy, and so a problem in is own back yard needs to be investigated.**

1. What *exactly* is wrong with this plaque photographed in 2011?
2. What should it have said?
3. If something is indeed wrong, has it been fixed?

---

[![Incorrect plaque at the Rose Center for Earth and Space, April 2011](https://i.sstatic.net/wj6Uz.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/wj6Uz.jpg)

**above:** [Incorrect plaque at the Rose Center for Earth and Space, April 2011](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Incorrect_plaque_at_the_Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space,_April_2011.jpg)

**below:** Rose Center for Earth and Space [Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rose_Center_for_Earth_and_Space.jpg) which *literally* contains the famous Hayden Planetarium.

[![Rose Center for Earth and Space which literally contains the Hayden Planetarium.](https://i.sstatic.net/peN0V.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/peN0V.jpg)

---

**Update:** I just noticed that even in 2011 the plaque had already been amended (at least) once!

[![Correction to Rose Center for Earth and Space which literally contains the Hayden Planetarium.](https://i.sstatic.net/nEMyA.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/nEMyA.jpg)

**Tags:** cosmology, observable-universe, cosmological-horizon
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Due to expansion, the radius of the observable universe is 46 billion lightyears. OTOH, thete are a few options when assigning numbers to cosmological distances. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distance_measures_(cosmology)  
> **username_2**: I would imagine, "13 billion year old universe, the cosmic horizon is 46 billion light years away" would require an additional plaque to explain the expanding universe and perhaps be confusing to many.  
> **username_3**: https://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/3635/how-can-the-13-8-billion-years-old-universe-have-a-radius-of-46-billion-light-ye?noredirect=1&lq=1  
> **username_4**: Might even be semantic.  The cosmic horizon is 13 billions ly away does really implies a distance or it can be interpreted correctly?  English is not my language, but it could refer to the real situation, no signal can have travelled for a time longer than the universe age. But indeed it is quite a source of misconception. I would have interpreted it in the wrong way just few years ago, before studying a bit more on the subject.  
> **username_5**: Latest radio telescopic array numbers put date at around 12.7 billion years. That's probably too new a number to be involved in here.  
> **username_0**: @WayfaringStranger Interesting! I want to ask a question about that number but in a quick search I can't find what you are referring to. Can you mention a link where that is described? Thanks!  
> **username_5**: @uhoh Would've sworn there was a radio telescope array in this one, but looks like it's mostly Hubble and the large Magellanic cloud. Two refs: https://www.space.com/universe-expanding-fast-new-physics.html xx https://arxiv.org/pdf/1903.07603.pdf  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_6 on 2019-05-07. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

I see 2 candidates:

* the universe is [13.8 billion years](https://www.space.com/24054-how-old-is-the-universe.html) old, so should be rounded off to 14
* the cosmic horizon is [46 billion ly](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Particle_horizon) away

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Wouldn't it be funny if it was 14 underneath those stickers that say 13? ;-)  
> **username_0**: or if it were 46?  
> **username_4**: It could have said ".... 46 billions ly away because meantime space has expanded, as is still expanding. " or something like that.  

---

