The Cosmic Story: Beginning of the Universe-The Big Bang Theory

When we consider the universe, what comes to mind? It’s one of those questions that comes up when we’re by ourselves, deep in thought, gazing up at the night sky, or just caught up in the maelstrom of our own lives. How did it all come to pass? What are we trying to accomplish here? When we consider the universe, the word that always seems to come to mind is “infinity.” In the cosmic unknown, new worlds are created as old ones disappear, creating an unending phenomenon. We are intrigued by these ideas, aren’t we? And we’re very certain that many other people share our concerns and have similar questions. We explore books, movies, and podcasts written by scientists who dedicate their careers to finding solutions.

We investigated the Big Bang Theory, the cosmic narrative, and the origins of the cosmos in our own pursuit of knowledge. As we put everything together, it became clear to us that sequencing these occurrences would be an intriguing method to investigate the universe’s journey, which is precisely what Environmental Verse is all about. We’ve all heard about the Big Bang, but have we given its backstory any meaningful thought? Thus, let us begin from now, at the outset, and go on the cosmic journey that envelops us.

The Cosmic Theory

There is a creator for everything in this universe. Like anything else, this blog is an attempt to gather, arrange, and present material in a way that makes sense, engages readers, and advances their understanding of environmental science. In a similar vein, the cosmos is a remarkably well-organized creation, and everyone wonders: Who or what created the universe? How did it all start, and why was it made? These are universal queries that pique interest in the universe’s beginnings and cut beyond religious divides.

The cosmic theory seeks to explain the universe’s beginnings, its historical development, and its potential end. Throughout history, scientists have been captivated by these inquiries. Numerous myths and ideas on the origins of the universe surfaced in antiquity, which prompted scientific research. The understanding of the cosmos has been shaped by some of the greatest minds in history, and their contributions still have an impact on how people perceive it today.

For instance, the theory of relativity was created by Albert Einstein. According to this idea, time and space are not fixed but rather bend and contract in response to the motion of things, particularly those moving at the speed of light. An intriguing way to illustrate this idea is through the idea of The Flash, a superhero who runs at superhuman speeds and has a unique perspective on time.

By demonstrating that the Earth and other planets orbit the Sun, putting it at the center of the universe, Nicolaus Copernicus transformed our understanding of the cosmos with his heliocentric model. A major change in our knowledge of the solar system’s structure was brought about by this model.

Another important contribution to our understanding of the cosmos was Isaac Newton’s law of gravitation. The structure of the universe and the motion of celestial things are maintained by the strong gravitational attraction that two big objects near one another will exert, according to Newton.

Lastly, the discovery of microwave background radiation by Robert Woodrow Wilson and Arno Allan Penzias in 1965 greatly shaped our view of the origins of the universe by offering vital evidence in favor of the Big Bang Theory.

In addition to providing answers to some of the biggest mysteries in the cosmos, these contributions from outstanding scientists have raised new ones. Each new discovery adds to our understanding of the grandeur of the cosmos, and the quest for knowledge never ends.

The Big Bang Theory

According to the Big Bang Theory, 13.8 billion years ago, the universe was just one dense point. The cosmos expanded and a massive explosion known as the Big Bang took place, much like when we inflate a balloon past a certain point at which it can no longer grow and bursts. Fred Hoyle coined this phrase in a 1949 BBC radio interview. He wasn’t formal in his usage of it. He actually opposed the Big Bang theory. Nor did he mean to make fun of it. But this term gained popularity, and we still use it now. It’s surprising and humorous, but that’s the way it is. When cosmic microwave background radiation was discovered in 1965, the term gained a lot of interest (Kragh, 2024).

What is this idea? Imagine seeing a flame as you light a matchstick. It cools and the flame goes out when you blow it. Similarly, following the Big Bang, the cosmos was initially extremely hot, and light was produced as a result of the heat. It cooled and expanded over time. The temperature of this radiation is 2.7 degrees today, which is extremely low. This explains why the electromagnetic spectrum contains a little band of microwave radiation. It provides compelling proof that the Big Bang actually happened. Although it wasn’t meant to be humorous, the name stuck and is now a key idea in cosmology.

First Phase: The Planck Epoch

Studying the precise events that followed the huge explosion is quite challenging. It was really hot in the universe. Imagine that you are considering painting the world on canvas. You take out various tubes of acrylic paint and blend the hues. While painting, everything is jumbled in your mind, yet you only use your imagination. Once you paint it, it becomes difficult to distinguish the original colors you used because they combine to create a new color. In a similar vein, everything was dispersed following the Big Bang, making the universe’s picture much hazier than it is today. At that time, a single powerful force was created by the combination of electromagnetic, nuclear, and gravitational forces. They split apart when the universe cooled over time. This time frame was dubbed the Planck Epoch by scientists.

Second Phase: The Grand Unification Epoch

The gravitational force split from the other forces when the cosmos cooled, improving the universe’s image a little. Scientists dubbed this era the Grand Unification Epoch and labeled this force the electrostrong force.

Third Phase: The Electroweak Epoch

The cosmos quickly expanded as the forces began to operate on their own, and structures started to emerge. The Electroweak Epoch is the name given to this era.

Fourth Phase: The Quark Epoch

Quarks are the minuscule constituents of matter. As the universe cooled, protons and neutrons combined to form particles known as hadrons. Atoms were made up of protons and neutrons. The Hadron Epoch was short-lived. It only lasted for a second or so. The stuff that gave rise to stars, planets, and everything else in the solar system was initially created by these particles.

Fifth Phase: The Lepton Epoch and Big Bang Nucleosynthesis

The universe cooled enough for leptons to take center stage between 1 and 10 seconds. Protons and neutrons created hydrogen and helium gas during this phase. Big Bang nucleosynthesis is the term for this process.

The Dark Ages: The Universe Before Stars

There was no light in the universe for about 150 million years. Clumps of hydrogen and helium were created by gravity. The universe entered a bright phase as the clusters ignited. Stars formed as a result of this. After that, the stars gave rise to the galaxies and the modern cosmic night sky.

The cosmos had sufficiently cooled after the Big Bang, which occurred approximately 377,000 years ago, for electrons to predominate and form atom nuclei. The universe became translucent at this phase, and light was able to move freely through space for the first time. It’s similar to starting a fire in a chilly nighttime forest.

The Friedmann Equation provides an excellent explanation of the universe’s expansion process and the forces underlying it. This idea states that the cosmos will contract if gravity is greater than the force pushing it apart, expand if gravity is less than the force pushing it apart, and expand continuously or uniformly if gravity is greater than the pushing force. The universe’s future is predicted by this equation. The complete paper is available here: Mesarec, L. (2021).

Furthermore, a novel concept known as Self-Regulating Cosmology (SRC) has emerged. According to this theory, which was presented in a paper by Manasse R. Mbonye, the universe moves through various stages known as kalpas. The universe goes through a transitional phase at the conclusion of each kalpa. This idea relates to the universe’s rejuvenation. A Big Bang-like event takes place at the conclusion of each phase and before to the start of a new kalpa.

Conclusion

Cosmology is the study of the cosmos and is a broad field. All of these stages show how the voyage changed from its starting point to its current state. Scientists supported the Big Bang Theory with scientific means. All of the phenomena that occurred are now better understood. There are scientific ideas that also forecast the universe’s future. Additional study is underway, and it is hoped that new ideas and terminology will be presented eventually.

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