Final answer:
The age of the universe can be estimated by taking the reciprocal of the Hubble constant, yielding an approximate age of 13.799 billion years, which aligns well with the common astrological figure of about 14 billion years. Due to the uncertainties in measuring the Hubble constant, there is approximately a 5% margin of error.
Step-by-step explanation:
The age of the universe can be approximated using the Hubble constant, which is the rate of expansion of the universe. By taking the reciprocal of the Hubble constant (1/H), astronomers can estimate the universe's age, known as Hubble time. It's important to note that there is an uncertainty in the Hubble constant value, leading to an approximate 5% uncertainty in the universe's age estimate.
The Hubble constant has been measured at about 67.31 kilometers/second per million parsecs, which, when calculated, provides us an age estimate for the universe of approximately 13.799 billion years. This is indeed an impressive number, as it suggests we can determine the age to within 38 million years. However, various estimates suggest the universe could be around 14 billion years old, which would be expressed in scientific notation as 1.4 × 10¹⁰ years.
To convert the value of the Hubble constant into an approximate age of the universe in seconds to years, we can simply divide 1 by the constant and then convert the resulting time using the conversion factor where 1 year is equal to 3.154×⁷ seconds. Different values of the Hubble constant will yield slightly different estimates for the universe's age, revealing the inherent uncertainties in such measurements.