Many people think that the model of the timeline of the Big Bang paves its way to explain a lot. And that is true! For instance, it tells us about the universe’s history and development. Moreover, the universe began as an incredibly hot and dense point. Besides telling you some crisp information, it also tells you that the universe started around 13.7 billion years ago.
To make it easier to understand. Let’s break down the journey of this timeline to the present into some simple steps:
Timeline of the Big Bang – Is it a Space Exploration?
You will be very surprised to know that the Big Bang wasn’t a space explosion. Researchers clarify that it signaled the birth of space across the entire universe. As per the Big Bang theory, the universe came to exist as an incredibly hot and dense point in space.
Furthermore, what happened before this moment remains unclear to cosmologists. However, using advanced space missions, ground-based telescopes, and complex calculations. Scientists have been working diligently to paint a clearer picture of the universe’s initial stages and how it formed.
Besides this, a significant part of this effort comes from studying the cosmic microwave background. This phenomenon tells us that the lingering glow of light and radiation that originates after the Big Bang. Spread throughout the universe, this can be detected by microwave instruments too. This phenomenon allows scientists to gather pieces of information about the universe’s early history, and how did the big bang happen!
The Inflation Stage – Where the Universe Timelines Underwent an Exponential Expansion!
During the universe’s early days, when it was extremely young. Around a hundredth of a billionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a second (a really tiny fraction!). The universe went through an extraordinary phase of rapid growth. This occurrence, known as inflation, saw the universe undergo exponential expansion. Throughout this time, the universe doubled in size at least 90 times.
David Spergel is a theoretical astrophysicist at Princeton University in Princeton, N.J.. He told that after inflation, the universe continued to grow, but at a slower rate.
“The universe was expanding, and as it expanded, it got cooler and less dense.”
The Formation of Different Compounds in the Timeline of the Big Bang
In the first three minutes after the universe came into existence. Thus, the lightweight chemical elements started to form. As the universe kept expanding, the dropping temperatures led to collisions between protons and neutrons. Which results in the creation of deuterium. It is an isotope of hydrogen. A significant portion of this deuterium then combined to produce helium.
The Phase of “Recombination”:
Around 380,000 years after the Big Bang, matter had cooled down enough for electrons to join with nuclei, creating neutral atoms. This phase is called “recombination.” The free electrons come together and made the universe become see-through. The light that was released during this period still exists today. And it is detectable radiation known as the cosmic microwave background.
After recombination, there was a dark period before stars and other bright objects appeared.
Big Bang Theory Timeline – The Dark Era!
About 400 million years after the Big Bang, the universe started to move out of the dark period. This crucial phase in the universe’s development is known as the age of re-ionization.
While it was initially thought to have taken over half a billion years, you will be surprised to know about the recent observations. They have led scientists to consider that re-ionization might have happened faster than previously believed.
During this timeline of the Big Bang, the clusters of gas came together to form the very first stars and galaxies. Besides this, the ultraviolet light emitted from these energetic events played a part in spreading out. It has cleared away most of the nearby neutral hydrogen gas.
Cosmic Microwave Background Theory – Significant Events of Universe Timeline
Astronomers are tirelessly exploring the vast reaches of the universe to find the most distant and ancient galaxies. This pursuit helps them understand how the early universe was like. Furthermore, by studying the cosmic microwave background, astronomers can effectively trace back and piece together the events that happened before.
For instance, many insights gained from earlier missions like WMAP and the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). Both launched in 1989, as well as ongoing missions like the Hubble Space Telescope, which began its mission in 1990. They all work together to contribute to the scientific effort of solving long-standing mysteries.
The Formation of “Milky Way” in the Big Bang Timeline:
Scientists believe that our solar system formed a little more than 9 billion years after the Big Bang. Which makes it roughly 4.6 billion years old. Current calculations indicate that the sun is just one of an astonishing 100 billion stars that exist in our Milky Way galaxy. It follows a path around 25,000 light-years away from the central core of the galaxy.
Different Galaxies & Seeing of the Distant Stars:
During the 1960s and 1970s, astronomers started considering that there could be more mass in the universe than what we can see. One of these astronomers was Vera Rubin, who worked at the Carnegie Institution of Washington. She looked at how fast stars were moving at different places within galaxies.
According to basic physics by Newton, stars at the edges of a galaxy should move slower compared to stars closer to the center. However, Rubin noticed something different. She discovered that there was no change in the speeds of stars as you moved farther out from the center. In fact, she found that all stars in a galaxy appeared to be moving around the center at roughly the same speed.
THE UNIVERSE IS’NT STANDING STILL!
In the 1920s, an astronomer named Edwin Hubble made a groundbreaking discovery about the universe. Using a newly constructed telescope at the Mount Wilson Observatory in Los Angeles. Hubble revealed something transformative: the universe isn’t standing still; it’s actually getting bigger.
Fast forward to 1998, and the famous Hubble Space Telescope, named after that same pioneering astronomer. He used on studying distant exploding stars known as supernovas. Its findings brought to light a remarkable insight: a significant time in the past saw the universe expanding at a slower rate than it is today. This discovery was important because it went against earlier beliefs. Where it is defined that the gravitational pull of matter in the universe would slow down its expansion or possibly even cause it to contract.
What is the timeline of the Big Bang theory?
- The Big Bang. 10-43 seconds.
- The Universe Takes Shape. 10-6 seconds.
- Formation of Basic Elements. 3 seconds.
- The Radiation Era. 10,000 years.
- Beginning the Era of Matter Domination. 300,000 years.
- Birth of Stars and Galaxies. 300 million years.
- Birth of the Sun. 5 Billion Years Before the Present (BP)
- Earliest Life.
What are two main eras in Big Bang timeline?
Since the Big Bang, the universe has gone through several eras distinguished by the behavior of the universe’s fundamental forces and particles.
- Planck Era.
- Grand Unification Era.
- Electroweak Era.
- Elementary Particle Era.
- Era of Nucleosynthesis.
- Era of Atoms.
What are the 7 steps of the Big Bang theory?
#1 – Inflation & the Beginning
#2 – A Hot Mess & a Jumble of Particles
#3 – Cooling Cosmos & Quarks> Protons + Neutrons
#4 – Dark, Hot, and Foggy Universe (EP)
#5 – Let There Be Light & Hydrogen + Helium
#6 – Giant Clouds, Galaxies, & Stars (by He & H)
#7 – Heavy Elements In/Become Stars
What are the 5 theories of the origin of the universe?
Throughout history, people have come up with different ideas to explain things they didn’t understand. These ideas ranged from thinking the Earth was flat to believing everything revolved around us, and then realizing the Sun was at the center. Later, we learned about the Big Bang and an even faster expansion called the Inflationary Big Bang. These ideas were based on what people knew at the time. Even though they might not be completely right, we shouldn’t just call them wrong. It’s more accurate to say they were a bit imperfect because they matched what people knew back then, but they might not explain everything completely.
Dark Matter & Dark Energy!
Even as our understanding of how the universe formed and grew has expanded greatly, there are still several unanswered questions that await solutions. One of the most prominent mysteries involves the puzzling realms of dark matter and dark energy. However, cosmologists continue their efforts to explore the complexities of the universe, aiming for a more complete understanding of where it came from.
The Contribution of JWST:
A significant stride in this ongoing journey was the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in 2021. This advanced telescope has the goal of advancing the search to uncover the elusive properties of dark matter. Additionally, its infrared instruments did poise to look both far into the distant past and forward through the unfolding story of the universe’s evolution. This could potentially shed light on crucial aspects of how the universe originated and developed.
