Big Bang: timeline

Big Bang Timeline 13.7 billion years ago – Before the Big Bang, the universe was a hot point ( ) of pure energy : Tremendous levels of radiation and heat prevented particles of matter from forming.

Big Bang Timeline 10 - 36 sec - 10 - 32 sec – Inflation Epoch - A sort of “reverse gravity” ballooned the universe to about a trillion trillion times bigger diameter (from a pinpoint to about the size of a grain of sand!!).

Big Bang Timeline 10 - 32 sec after the Big Bang “Quark Soup” (Quark / Gluon Plasma) The 4 forces separate: Gravity Strong Nuclear Force Weak Nuclear Force Electromagnetic Force…

Big Bang Timeline 10 - 32 sec after the Big Bang “Quark Soup” (Quark / Gluon Plasma) …leaving a superhot, charged plasma of the tiniest particles of matter: Quarks Leptons electrons & neutrinos

Big Bang Timeline (This mess is nicknamed “Quark Soup”.) The Universe is still only the size of a tennis ball at this point, but it’s growing like crazy!!)

Big Bang Timeline 10 - 6 sec (1/1,000,000 sec) – 1 sec after Big Bang As the universe expands, it cools off quickly. The ambient temperature in the universe drops to a mere 1 trillion degrees… …as the Universe has expands rapidly until it reaches 80 billion miles across.

Big Bang Timeline Proton 10 - 6 sec (1/1,000,000 sec) - 1 sec after the Big Bang It is cool enough that quarks collide and join to form protons & neutrons Neutron

Big Bang Timeline These protons are the first atomic nuclei (of hydrogen atoms). Most hydrogen atoms are as old as the universe. Proton

anti-quarks joined to form anti-protons and anti-neutrons. Big Bang Timeline 10 - 6 sec (1/1,000,000 sec) - 1 sec ( continued) Note: At the same time: anti-quarks joined to form anti-protons and anti-neutrons.

Big Bang Timeline 10 - 5 sec (1/100,000 sec) (cont.) Much of the matter and all of the anti-matter annihilated each other, filling the universe with huge amounts of radiation.

Big Bang Timeline annihilated each other, 10 - 5 sec (1/100,000 sec) (cont.) Much of the matter and all of the anti-matter annihilated each other, filling the universe with huge amounts of radiation.

3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Universe expands to form a thermonuclear fireball 1.3 trillion miles across! 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Universe expands to form a thermonuclear fireball 1.3 trillion miles across!

Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Neutrons and protons collide and finally stick together to form Helium (He) nuclei… (held together by the strong nuclear force)

Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Neutrons and protons collide and finally stick together to form Helium (He) nuclei… (held together by the strong nuclear force)

Big Bang Timeline …(and just a handful of Lithium (Li) nuclei). 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang …(and just a handful of Lithium (Li) nuclei). Evidence: The universe is still 99.9 % H and He today. (92.7 % H and 7.2 % He)

Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Primordial Nucleosynthesis Neutrons and protons collide to form Helium (He) nuclei… 3He

Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang As the fireball expands to a couple of 1000 times bigger than our solar system: Temperatures drop below 1 billiono C for the first time.

Big Bang Timeline Electrons are flying around unattached 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang Electrons are flying around unattached to atoms, trapping photons of light, ultraviolet and x-ray radiation and keeping the universe opaque. opaque.

Beryllium “Bottleneck” Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang These “cooler” temperatures cause fusion reactions to stop before larger elements can form. Beryllium “Bottleneck”

Big Bang Timeline 3 min - 20 minutes after the Big Bang These “cooler” temperatures cause fusion reactions to stop before larger elements can form. Evidence: the universe is still 99.9 % Hydrogen & Helium today!

Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later - Temperature drops to 3000o C. The universe had grown a lot (about 42 million ly across), but it was still 1100 X smaller than it is today.

Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later - Temperature drops to 3000o C. Electrons slow down…

Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later - …and start to orbit the atomic nuclei to make atoms of hydrogen, helium and lithium. Lithium Helium

Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later – continued Matter and energy decouple (separate from each other) as atoms form. Photons of light and neutrinos stopped interacting with electrons and are no longer “trapped”.

Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later – continued This decoupling released huge amounts of gamma rays and cosmic rays. Decoupling also cleared up the universe, which became transparent.. transparent

Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later – continued This high energy radiation has cooled off to become the still seen today. Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation

Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation Big Bang Timeline 380,000 years later – continued 1967 - discovered by Penzias and Wilson Studied in greater detail, first by the COBE and more recently by the WMAP space exploration projects. These images show the universe as it appeared 13.7 billion years ago. (See next frame.) Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation

Cosmic Background Microwave Radiation (WMAP Satellite Shows a More Detailed Image) COBE WMAP

Deep Field Telescope View of the Early Galaxies Big Bang Timeline Deep Field Telescope View of the Early Galaxies 500 Million to 1 Billion Years Later (12.7 b.y. ago) Gravity causes clouds of H and He to condense into lumpy pockets called galaxies (about 100 billion of them!). (The pockets of intense radiation on the WMAP are thought to be the sources of the first galaxies.)

Big Bang Timeline 500 Million to 1 Billion Years Later (12.7 b.y. ago) The Pleiades – An Open Star Cluster 500 Million to 1 Billion Years Later (12.7 b.y. ago) Within each galaxy, smaller balls of H and He were pulled inward by gravity and the first stars were formed. The first stars were composed entirely of H and He.

Big Bang Timeline 500 Million to 1 Billion Years Later (12.7 b.y. ago) These first stars were 100X more massive than the sun and “burned out” much more quickly than our sun: Early Stars: 1 – 3 million years Our Sun: 10 billion years

Big Bang Timeline Galaxies evolve and form clusters. 3 Billion Years After the Big Bang to Today- Galaxies evolve and form clusters. Stars die out and spew heavier elements into space.

9.1 Billion Years After the Big Bang (4.6 billion years ago) Big Bang Timeline 9.1 Billion Years After the Big Bang (4.6 billion years ago) Earth’s Sun and Solar System formed after 750 generations of stars had come and gone.

Big Bang Timeline 9.1 Billion Years After the Big Bang… (4.6 billion years ago) (Our sun is made up of a lot of “recycled” parts from earlier stars, not just H & He, but Li, C,O, Na, Ca, Fe and many others.

First Galaxies and Stars 1st Protons (H Nuclei) & Neutrons Big Bang Timeline First Galaxies and Stars “Quark Soup” He & Li Nuclei Atoms Form Today Galaxies Evolve Our Sun Pure Energy 1st Protons (H Nuclei) & Neutrons The Skies Clear… 13.7 Billion years 380,000 years 9 Billion Years 10-6 sec 3 min 3 Billion Years

A Stanmo Production Thanks to NASA and JPL for the great pix. 2008

The Big Crunch??

Matter & the fate of the universe Not Enough Matter Just Enough Matter Too Much Matter

Big Bang Timeline P+ & N0 Combine to form He & Li Nuclei First Galaxies and Stars “Quark Soup” Atoms Form Today Galaxies Evolve Our Sun 1st Protons (H Nuclei) & Neutrons Pure Energy The Skies Clear… 380,000 years 13.7 Billion years 9 Billion Years 10-6 sec 3 min 3 Billion Years

1st Protons (H Nuclei) & Neutrons Big Bang Timeline “Quark Soup” He & Li Nuclei Atoms Form Today First Galaxies First Stars Our Sun Pure Energy 1st Protons (H Nuclei) & Neutrons The Skies Clear… 13.7 Billion years 380,000 years 3 Billion Years 9 Billion Years 10-6 sec 3 min

Big Bang Timeline 10 - 32 sec – “Quark Soup” Know the "Big Four"