The quasi-steady state cosmology: Theory and observations

This is a review of an alternative cosmology, recently proposed by Fred Hoyle, Geoffrey Burbidge and this author. It begins with a brief discussion of why one needs an alternative cosmology, when the standard hot big bang cosmology is claimed to be doing well. It is argued that the observational and theoretical constraints on the standard big bring cosmology, from various directions, leave a very narrow window, if any, in the parameter space of plausible models. There is thus a strong case for alternative cosmologies. The rest of the review concentrates on one alternative, the quasi steady state cosmology (QSSC) and summarises the recent work on this model. This includes, the theoretical formulation and simple exact solutions of the basic equations, their relationship to various observations, the stability of solutions and the toy model for understanding the growth of structures in the Universe.