original_query: What is the significance of accurately measuring the value of the Hubble constant and its relation to the age of the universe?
query: What is the significance of accurately measuring the value of the Hubble constant and its relation to the age of the universe?
answer: Accurately measuring the Hubble constant is crucial for determining the age of the universe.  Before the HST, estimates had errors up to 50%, but Hubble's measurements reduced this to ±10%, leading to a refined age estimate of around 13.7 billion years, compared to previous predictions ranging from 10 to 20 billion years.