re Stellar Distance Measurements Opening a Window into New Physics

his paper derives a mathematical analysis of the apparent conflict between photometrically based and parallax distance measurements. The best photometrically based distance measurements using the Hubble telescope when compared with the algorithm corrected Gaia parallax measurements do not agree. The algorithm corrected Gaia parallax measurements are quoted by the Gaia team as correct to within a few mico arcseconds, but Riess et al (2021) subtract a further ten micro arc-seconds from each Cepheid parallax. These further corrections to the Gaia data eliminate the conflict and support the Hubble tension derived by Riess et al (2021). There is no conflict in the Hubble photometric and Gaia parallax distances in the Riess et al (2022) paper. Riess et al (2022) use earlier Gaia derived cluster distances and adopt a zero point correction derived from the photometry. The mathematical analysis shows that an alternative method of eliminating the conflict indicates a tiny attenuation of light in the Milky Way. It is argued that this attenuation of the light is completely wavelength-independent. All photometry is equally effected by this wavelength independent attenuation, which requires new physics. Photometry cannot be used to reveal any new physics due to the absorption being wavelength independent. It is shown that when the wavelength independent absorption is included in calculating the absolute magnitude of Cepheids it removes the Hubble tension.