TH E O R IG IN A N D FATE O F

TH E U N IV ER S E

The Structure,Com position

and Age ofthe U niverse
Space, time, matter and energy
4.6 % baryonic matter
24% cold dark matter
71.4% dark energy

 Baryonic matter consists of ordinary

matter such as protons, electrons

and neutrons, atoms: atoms, planets,
stars, galaxies, nebulae, and other
celestial bodies
Cold dark matter possesses gravity
but does not emit light
Dark energy is the source of antigravity

 The three most abundant

elements in the universe :

Hydrogen
Helium
Lithium
Including small traces of

beryllium

 Stars are the building block of

galaxies
Stars are born out of clouds of
gas and dust in galaxies

Birth,evolution,death and
rebirth ofstars
~A galaxy is a cluster of billions
of stars
~A supercluster is composed
of clusters of galaxies
~The organization of matter in
the universe suggests that is
indeed clumpy at a certain scale
but at a larger scale it appears
homogeneous and isotropic

The Interstellar Clouds

The primordial gas after the Big

Bang has very low heavy metal
content
The interstellar clouds that the
solar system was built from gas
that has gone through several
star-gas-star cycles.

Theories on the O rigin ofthe

U niverse
Creation Myth
Big Bang
Steady State
Inflation
String
M theory

Creation Myth
~ a symbolic narrative of the
beginning of the world as
understood
by culture.
Christian

Greek
African
Indian
Chinese
Native American

Big Bang Theory

Alexander Friedman and Georges

Lamaitre proposed the big bang

theory in 1920
The currently accepted theory of the
origin of the universe postulates that
13.7-13.8 billion years ago, the
universe expanded from a tiny,
dense and hot mass to its present
size and much cooler state.

The Big Bang Tim e Line

Inflationary epoch (10-35 to 10-33)
Formation of the universe (10 to -6 s)
Formation of the basic elements (3 s)
Radiation era (10,000 years)
Matter domination (300,000 years)
Birth of stars and galaxies (300 million
years)

The Fundam entalForces

Strong Force
Weak Force
Electromagnetic Force
Gravitational Force

Lines ofEvidence supporting

the Big Bang Theory
Galaxies are moving away
Detection of Cosmic Microwave

Background Radiation
Abundance of light elements
The final line of evidence is the
formation of galaxies and the large
scale structure of the cosmos.

U nresolved Problem s on Big

Bang Theory
Flatness there should be curvature

as time grows
Monopole No magnetic monopoles
that have been observed
Horizon distant regions in space
must have had contact in the past.

PREDICTION

OBSERVED

There should be
FLATNESS curvature as time
grows

Flat universe

Production of
MONOPOL heavy stable
E
magnetic
monopoles

No magnetic
monopoles

Distant regions of
The regions must
HORIZON space in opposite
have had contact in
directions of the
the past
sky are so far apart

Steady State Theory

Proposed by Bondi, Gold, and Hoyle
The universe is unchanging in time

and uniform in space.

Accepted the fact that the universe
is expanding but rejected the idea of
a Big Bang
Steady state theory postulated that
the universe is infinitely old

 Steady state suggested that new

galaxies continually form in the gaps

that open up as the universe
expands thereby keeping the same
average distance between galaxies
at all times.
The steady state theory said that the
creation of the universe is an
ongoing and eternal process rather
than having happened all at once
with a Big Bang.

Failures ofSteady State Theory

The discovery of Cosmic Microwave

Background Radiation
Galaxies at great distances look
younger than nearby galaxies

Infl
ation
Developed in 1981 by Alan Guth,

Andrei Linde, Paul Steinhart and

Andrei Albrecht
This proposed a period of
exponential expansion of the
universe prior to the more gradual
big bang expansion.

 First moments after Big Bang, the

four fundamental forces were joined.

Then, the forces started to separate,
but it was not until the separation of
both of the nuclear forces when an
enormous liberation of energy was
originated.

String Theory
The assembly of particle type is

replaced by a fundamental building

block called string.
The strings are free to vibrate a
different modes.
The string theory is consistent with
quantum gravity and can able to
describe interactions of strings

M -Theory
The proponents are Stephen

Hawking and Leonard Mlodinov

In this theory, the origin of the
universe occurs as a result of the
contact of two hyperdimensional
branes. This allows for an infinite
number of parallel universes which
have the possibility of interphasing.