The Big Bang Theory
The Big Bang Theory (No, Not the TV Show) is one of the most widely accepted explanations of the origin of our universe.
For as long as we can record there has been constant inquiry and conflict about the formation and structure of our universe. There is an INSANE number of elements within our known universe that we yet don’t understand and undoubtedly much more we don’t even know about.
But first, let’s tackle the question — “Why even bother?”. There are more than a few who think pondering how the universe came to be may be a huge waste of time and resources.
In every epic superhero story, there is an origin story that helps the audience see and understand a whole other layer of characteristics of the character. For instance: Tony Starks own weapons almost killed him, Spiderman learnt how to take on responsibility the hard way *cough* uncle ben *cough* and Loki had terrible parents. Each backstory provides a deeper insight. The point is — To completely understand these unknown elements and their properties we need to understand their origins. The Big Bang theory is a take on what could be our universe’s epic origin story.
The First Flag
Studies behind the big bang were first established when early astrophysicists first recorded the Doppler effect in galaxies. The Doppler effect is, simply put, a method of measuring the change in wavelength of electromagnetic (light) waves coming from distant stars and galaxies, when moving away the light waves’ wavelengths get larger and we can observe it as redshift. By measuring this change in wavelength it was discovered that they are moving away from us. This Proved that our universe is constantly expanding in all directions. But if it is expanding in all directions, there had to have been a starting point right?
(Still, lost on the doppler effect? Or do you want to know more? In either case, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikgRZt1BSyk&ab_channel=Astronomic)
The singularity
The term “Big Bang” suggests an explosion. However, this was not the case. For an explosion to happen the should have been a ”place” for “something” to explode in. Instead, there was nothingness. Time, space, energy and matter were yet to come into existence.
When time first begins, Somewhere between 12 and 14 billion years ago, a point appears during the first smallest fraction of a second (Think of the smallest value greater than 0 possible) This was the start of time. And that point was all the present energy, space and matter condensed into one infinitely dense point known as the singularity. (Note: it was not a glowing point, the image is purely for illustrative purposes. it was simply a point)
The Inflationary Epoch
As the first fractions of a second pass Space and energy start to expand in all directions. This short and extremely brief period was known as the inflationary epoch. During this period the density of the universe decreased rapidly as did the temperature. It was cooler in comparison to the singularity but still insanely hot. Immediately after this period, the expansion of the galaxy had significantly slowed down to a rate of expansion we can see today. This was the “Big Bang” Not an explosion of space but its rapid expansion.
First Evidence.
Until recently the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) was the only evidence of what was thought to be the big bang. It is thought to be an image of the remnant radiation from the big bang. it provided the strongest possible evidence that the universe expanded from an initial violent expansion its radiation is seen spread evenly out (unlike today where matter is seen in clusters such as galaxies). The CMB dates back to about 400,000 years after the Big Bang and according to NASA, its temperature was around 273 million degrees above absolute zero. However as time passed this temperature dropped drastically and now the CMB is very cold, just 2.725 degrees above absolute zero i.e minus 459.67 degrees Fahrenheit or minus 273.15 degrees Celsius. It is, therefore, invisible to the human eye (Because it is super cold the “light” or electromagnetic waves are not present as visible light.) This means its radiation is most visible in the microwave (Invisible light) part of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Matter’s Debut
According to Einstein’s popular equation E=MC² (Energy = mass moving at the squared speed of light), Energy can be converted into mass. So Immediately after the inflationary epoch, the first signs of matter were seen. At this stage, the radiation present in the universe has slightly cooled down. This allowed for the first elementary particles to form (They have very interesting names, see image ABOVE ).
Of these particles Up quarks, down quarks and electrons (leptons) are grouped to form newtons and protons. These particles group up to form the first elements, Hydrogen and Helium
The Cosmic Dark ages, and the first light.
Beginning about 400,000 years after the Big Bang and lasting hundreds of millions of years, the cosmic dark ages. During this period, it was still way too hot or dense for Hydrogen particles to bond and create new forms of matter. So for the next hundreds of millions of years, the universe simply kept expanding. And at this point, the only thing that existed was radiation and a huge cloud of hydrogen and helium.
As the universe continued to expand it got less dense and therefore, colder. At this point helium too had made an appearance, it was now cold enough for dust helium and hydrogen to collect and react in clusters of clouds called stellar nebulae. For and behold the birth of stars and the first lights of the universe. These stars were the element factories of our existing universe. Inside these balls of light new elements like oxygen, gold, uranium, iron, and more are all created in the cores of stars. (The Elements formed depend on the size of the star). When these stars “die” in a supernova, an insane explosion that may be the most beautiful thing in the universe, shoots elemental atoms out all over the universe. These particles then collect and fuse to form all the bodies in the present universe.
Theory. Not Fact.
Why the big bang is a theory, not a fact? The theory has multiple plotholes. This is, however, one fatal flaw in the big bang theory; it completely disregards the first law of thermodynamics or the law of energy conservation, “energy is neither created nor destroyed”. Where did the energy, matter and space we see come from? The concept of it all being smushed into one point is absurd. And as ridiculous as it sounds it is, unfortunately, the best we have.
It is important to remember that these “laws of the universe” are concepts that humans have written out and tested, for all we know we could be dead wrong. Or at the very least — we know for sure that our understanding is incomplete. Similarly, The big bang is simply a theory to explain the first few seconds of the universe (the singularity to the CMB) however the whole concept is still subject to question. This theory is the best we have and hence is widely excepted. Whilst it’s the best we have at the movement — it is vital to keep an open mind toward other possibilities.
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Don't forget to check out my kids' book on The Big Bang Theory
