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The acceleration of the cosmic expansion is a fundamental
challenge to standard models of particle physics and cosmology.
The new physics of dark energy may lie in the nature of gravity
(when is gravity no longer attractive?), the quantum vacuum (does
nothing weigh something?), or extra dimensions (is nowhere somewhere?).
I present an overview of the puzzles and possibilities of dark energy
and the means for unraveling them through cosmological probes. Next
generation experiments such as the Joint Dark Energy Mission (JDEM)
satellite could measure the supernova distance-redshift relation to
high accuracy and map the evolution of structure and dark matter
through gravitational lensing. These observations will explore the
frontiers of physics and aim to uncover what makes up the still unknown
95% of our universe, while producing astronomical images equal to a
million Hubble Deep Fields.
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