Learn about the current hypotheses on how the universe formed, from the widely accepted Big Bang Theory to the speculative Multiverse and Simulation Theories. Explore the assumptions, evidence, and implications of each theory with Earth.com.
Learn how the universe began with a cosmic explosion and evolved over time, according to the best-supported theory. Explore the evidence, challenges, and mysteries of the big bang and its aftermath.
Here is the history of the universe according to cosmologists’ current theories. Cosmic Inflation. Around 13.8 billion years ago, the universe expanded faster than the speed of light for a fraction of a second, a period called cosmic inflation. Scientists aren’t sure what came before inflation or what powered it.
Learn how scientists study the origin and evolution of the Universe using telescopes, simulations, and theory. Explore the Big Bang, Inflation, Cosmic Microwave Background, and the first stars and black holes.
This theory means that the expansion allowed the universe's distant areas to interact and influence each other, resulting in them reaching the same temperature. In other words, the physics described by the cosmic inflation theory would allow the present universe to have expanded faster than the speed of light during this early inflationary period.
Throughout history, countless myths and scientific theories have tried to explain the universe's origins. The most widely accepted explanation is the big bang theory. Learn about the explosion that started it all and how the universe grew from the size of an atom to encompass everything in existence today.
The origin of the universe has long been a profound and fundamental question for scientists, philosophers, and theologians alike. Over the past century, the field of cosmology has evolved significantly, with the development of sophisticated theories that attempt to explain how the universe came into existence. The leading framework is the Big Bang Theory, but several alternative theories and ...
This section explores various scientific theories about the universe's origin, including the Steady State Theory, which suggests continuous matter creation keeping the universe's density constant, and the Big Bang Theory, which posits the universe began from an infinitely small, hot, dense point approximately 13.7 billion years ago. It discusses the decline of the Steady State Theory due to ...
The origins of the universe and solar system set the context for conceptualizing the Earth’s origin and early history. ... The big-bang theory proposes that the universe was formed from an infinitely dense and hot material core. The bang in the title suggests there was an explosive, outward expansion of all matter and space that created atoms
By examining these perspectives, we gain a more nuanced comprehension of the universe's origins. Steady State Theory. The Steady State Theory presents an interesting contrast to the Big Bang model. Proposed in the 1940s by Fred Hoyle, Thomas Gold, and Hermann Bondi, this theory posits that the universe is eternal and unchanging on a large scale.
By assessing key theories along with their scientific basis and implications, the goal is to shed light on the complexity of our universe’s origin. Understanding the universe is not just the concern of scientists; it touches upon philosophical, cultural, and existential matters. By unpacking significant theories like the Big Bang and steady ...
Nucleosynthesis theory accurately predicts the abundances of elements and isotopes measured in the most primeval samples of the universe—namely, the oldest stars and high-redshift gas clouds.
The Big Bang: Origins of our Universe. The Big Bang is the best-supported scientific theory for how the universe was created. 13.7 billion years ago there was nothing and nowhere. Everything that ever existed was contained in a subatomic particle that was billions of times smaller than an atom. Within a fraction of a second, this amazingly tiny ...
The long history of Earth, and of life on Earth, was something that humans began to discover long before we began to understand the Universe: back in the 1800s.
Explore the history and development of various theories of the origin of the universe, from the big bang to alternative models. Learn how science, religion, and culture have influenced and been influenced by cosmology.
Explore the Big Bang theory and other cosmological puzzles in this 8-part series of stories, videos and infographics. Learn how the universe evolved from its birth to today, and what it may look like in the future.
The Big Bang theory, as we know it, describes the birth and early evolution of our universe. It tells a compelling story of space, time, matter, and energy springing into existence about 13.8 billion years ago from a state of incomprehensible density and heat.
But scientists have theorized their existence as a way to explain some of the biggest questions in particle physics, including the nature of dark matter, the mysterious substance that constitutes most the mass of the cosmos. Confirming the existence of axions could lead to insights into the history and composition of the universe itself.