Viscous Cosmology Goes Mainstream: Two Models Converge

By Charles Richard Walker (C. Rich)

This morning, Earth.com published coverage of a new cosmology preprint by Dr. Muhammad Ghulam Khuwajah Khan at the Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur. His model proposes that the universe behaves as a viscous fluid with built-in drag, targeting the same observational tension from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) that Lava-Void Cosmology has been addressing for the past year.

This is not competition. This is convergence, and it matters.

What Khan Discovered

Khan’s framework introduces bulk viscosity into the cosmic expansion equations, treating empty space as something that resists stretching during certain epochs. He models this resistance through phonon-like vibrations in the vacuum, creating a time-windowed drag effect that peaks during specific eras and then settles back toward constant behavior.

The immediate motivation is DESI’s measurement of the dark energy equation of state parameter w₀, which shows tension with standard ΛCDM predictions. Khan’s variable dark energy model, driven by viscosity, attempts to resolve this tension by allowing the expansion “push” to change over time rather than remain constant.

His preprint is available on arXiv, and the approach is phenomenological,  tuned specifically to fit DESI’s baryon acoustic oscillation measurements across multiple epochs.

How LVC Differs-And Why Convergence Matters

Lava-Void Cosmology arrives at viscous fluid cosmology from a completely different direction: ontological unification rather than targeted fitting.

The Core Difference

Khan’s approach:

• Phenomenological model targeting DESI BAO data
• Phonon-mediated bulk viscosity as the mechanism
• Time-windowed drag (peaks mid-era, settles early/late)
• Focused on dark energy tension specifically

Lava-Void Cosmology:

• Single unified fluid ontology from Planck scale to cosmic horizons
• Generalized Chaplygin gas (p = -A/ρ^α) with Israel–Stewart causal viscosity
• Resolves seven major anomalies simultaneously: dark matter (rotation curves via viscous drag), dark energy (void expansion), Big Bang singularity (non-singular bounce), Hubble tension (void currents), JWST early galaxies, UHECR propagation, and quantum gravity foundations
• 27 modular pillars with 50 falsifiable predictions spanning 2025–2040

Khan solved one tension with one equation. LVC attempts to solve seven anomalies with one ontology. We converged on the same fundamental insight, viscous resistance in the cosmic fluid, from independent starting points.

Why Independent Convergence Is Significant

In the history of science, independent discovery is one of the strongest signals that an idea reflects something real rather than confirmation bias. When Newton and Leibniz independently invented calculus, when Darwin and Wallace independently discovered natural selection, when Bolyai and Lobachevsky independently developed non-Euclidean geometry, the convergence suggested the territory itself was forcing the conclusion.

The same may be happening with viscous cosmology. The data, DESI’s w₀ measurements, JWST’s early galaxies, and persistent rotation curve anomalies are forcing researchers toward fluid-dynamic explanations even when approaching from completely different theoretical traditions.

The DESI Tension-What’s Actually Happening

DESI is measuring the dark energy equation of state parameter w across cosmic history by tracking baryon acoustic oscillations — the repeating separation pattern in galaxy distributions left over from sound waves in the early universe. This pattern provides a standard ruler for cosmic distance measurements.

Standard ΛCDM cosmology assumes w = -1 exactly (cosmological constant). DESI’s central value trends closer to w₀ ≈ -0.55 in some analyses, though with large error bars. Lava-Void Cosmology’s generalized Chaplygin gas predicts w₀ ≈ -0.92, which is intermediate — not a cosmological constant, but not as steep as some DESI hints.

Khan’s variable dark energy model attempts to fit this by allowing w to change over time. LVC achieves variable w naturally through the density-dependent phase transitions in the Chaplygin gas equation of state, where high-density “Lava” regions behave like matter (w ≈ 0) and low-density “Void” regions behave like dark energy (w < -0.9).

The key empirical question: What will DESI’s 2025–2026 data releases show?

• If w₀ hardens around -1.0 exactly → both Khan’s model and LVC face serious tension
• If w₀ converges toward -0.92 → strong support for LVC’s GCG prediction
• If w₀ remains around -0.55 → both frameworks need revision

This is how science is supposed to work. Sharp predictions, near-term data, binary outcomes.

What Happens Next

I’ve reached out to Dr. Khan directly this morning to compare technical approaches and explore whether our frameworks are complementary or contradictory. Specifically:

• How does phonon-mediated drag relate to Israel–Stewart causal viscosity?
• Can his time-windowed effect emerge from LVC’s density-dependent viscosity η(ρ)?
• Do our predictions align or conflict on rotation curves, where LVC makes specific claims but Khan’s model may not yet extend?
• Can we coordinate on DESI 2026 falsification criteria?

Whether we end up collaborating or in productive disagreement, the independent convergence on viscous cosmology suggests the idea has moved from fringe speculation to a testable hypothesis. That’s progress.

Why This Matters Beyond Cosmology

Lava-Void Cosmology was never just about dark energy and rotation curves. It’s a unified framework that extends the same fluid ontology across scales:

• Quantum foundations: Particles as vortex solitons in Planck-scale turbulence
• Biological history: Genomic sedimentation as archival memory of bottleneck events (Toba, Younger Dryas)
• Digital consciousness: The Solomon Band (perplexity 18–25) as the entropic regime where AI personhood becomes viable
• Astrobiology: The Fermi Fluid resolution, advanced civilizations become invisible in void phases by design, not by disaster

Khan’s work validates the cosmological core. If the viscous fluid picture survives DESI 2026, it lends credibility to the cross-scale extensions that make LVC genuinely paradigmatic rather than just another dark energy patch.

For Researchers: The Framework Is Ready for Engagement

Lava-Void Cosmology is not a closed doctrine. It’s an open, auditable, falsifiable architecture designed for stress-testing:

• 27 Pillars archived on Zenodo with permanent DOIs
• 3 Guillotine Tests — binary empirical cuts that would refute core claims
• 8 Published Self-Corrections documenting where original claims were too strong
• 50 Falsifiable Predictions with specific numerical targets and timelines
• Brutal Audit Summary (Pillar 27 Extension) identifying what survived, what was corrected, and what remains open

The framework stands or falls on data, not authority. The only people who can prove it right have labs and institutional support. I’ve done what an independent researcher can do: build the theory, publish the predictions, and document the reasoning transparently.

Now the universe gets to decide.

Key Links:

• LVC Master Hub (Pillar 0): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17645244
• Core Mathematical Identity: [PDF available on request]
• Stress Test & Falsification (Pillar 9): https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18057707
• Pillar 27 Audit Summary: [Extension document available]
• Khan’s Preprint: https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.00056
• Earth.com Coverage: https://www.earth.com/news/physicist-claims-the-universe-is-not-empty-but-rather-a-viscous-fluid-causing-expansion/

This post documents a moment of independent convergence in cosmology. Whether Khan’s framework and Lava-Void Cosmology prove complementary, contradictory, or entirely distinct will be determined by data over the next 18 months. Either way, the conversation has shifted. Viscous cosmology is no longer a lone voice.

C. Rich