The Big Bang
It happened very quickly at the beginning of the Universe.
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In order to explain what happened scientists use measurements of time that are very small as one ten million trillion trillion trillionth of a second.
At first…
- the Universe was unspeakably small and hot – getting larger and cooler ever since.
- four fundamental forces (strong & weak nuclear forces, electromagnetism & gravity) were unified into a single force.
- gravity was the first force to separate, followed by a strong nuclear force – this sparked off known as inflation (splashiness) and the Universe suddenly became billions of billions times bigger.
Four fundamental force
(Weak Nuclear Forces / Gravity / Electromagnetic Force / Strong Nuclear Force)
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About one-billionth of one second…
- about one-billionth of one second after the Big Bang, the Universe lay in a dense sea of quarks and other particles – tiny pieces of anything; atoms, molecules, etc).
Dense sea of quarks
A quark is a tiny particle which makes up protons and neutrons.
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About three minutes…
- About three minutes after the Big Bang there was a brief period of nucleosynthesis when quarks joined together to form neutrons and protons.
Nucleosynthesis
Nucleosynthesis is the process that creates new atomic
nuclei from pre-existing nucleons (protons and neutrons).
According to current theories, the first nuclei were formed a few minutes
after the Big Bang, through the process called Big Bang nucleosynthesis.
Protons and Neutrons
Protons and neutrons are in the centre (nucleus) of the atom.
(Proton positive; electron negative; neutron no charge. )
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300,000 years later…
- the Universe remained completely not transmitting light yet – then it became cool enough for neutrons and protons to capture electrons and form atoms.
- then the Universe was transparent to light and other electromagnetic energy.
Electromagnetic Energy
(a form of energy that is reflected or emitted from objects in the form
of electrical and magnetic waves that can travel through space.)
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About 100 million years later …
- about 100 million years after the Big Bang, the first stars began to shine.
The very first stars to shine
(likely formed when the Universe was about 100 million years old,
prior to the formation of the first galaxies.)
Story of the Universe
(Click for enlarge image.)
There is still much to be discovered about the Universe and the Big Bang,
recently the scientists have proposed that there must be a fifth fundamental force
(known as dark energy) that prevents the Universe from collapsing inwards
under the force of its own gravity.
The Fifth Force
The Fifth fundamental force are in no particular order
gravity, electromagnetism, the weak nuclear force and the strong nuclear force.
(Click for enlarge image.)
.Back to The Universe / next to Microwave Background page.