Universe
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UNIVERSE The Universe is defined as the summation of all particles and energy that exist and the space-time in which all events occur. Based on observations of the portion of the Universe that is observable, physicists attempt to describe the whole of space-time, including all matter and energy and events which occur, as a single system corresponding to a mathematical model.The generally accepted scientific theory which describes the origin and evolution of the Universe is Big Bang cosmology, which describes the expansion of space from an extremely hot and dense state of unknown characteristics. The Universe underwent a rapid period of cosmic inflation that flattened out nearly all initial irregularities in the energy density; thereafter the universe expanded and became steadily cooler and less dense. Minor variations in the distribution of mass resulted in hierarchical segregation of the features that are found in the current universe; such as clusters and superclusters of galaxies. There are more than one hundred billion (1011) galaxies in the Universe,[1] each containing hundreds of billions of stars, with each star containing about 1057 atoms of hydrogen.
Etymology The word "universe" is derived from Old French univers, from Latin universum, which combines uni- (the combining form of unus, or "one") with versus (perfect passive participle of vertere, or "turn"). The word, therefore, means "all turned into one" or "revolving as one" or "orbiting as one".
Name of our Universe In the same way that the Moon refers to our (Earth's) moon, the Universe is used by some cosmologists to refer to our Universe. In this article, the Universe is equivalent to our observable Universe. Theoretical and observational cosmologists vary in their usage of the term the Universe to mean either this whole system or just a part of this system.[2] As used by observational cosmologists, the Universe most frequently refers to the finite part of space-time. The Universe is directly observable by making observations using telescopes and other detectors, and by using the methods of theoretical and empirical physics for studying its components. Physical cosmologists assume that the observable part of (comoving) space (also called our universe) corresponds to a part of a model of the whole of space, and usually not to the whole space. They use the term the Universe ambiguously to mean either the observable part of space, the observable part of space-time, or the entire space-time. In order to clarify terminology, George Ellis, U. Kirchner and W.R. Stoeger recommend using the term the Universe for the theoretical model of all of the connected space-time in which we live, universe domain for the observable universe or a similar part of the same space-time, universe for a general space-time (either our own Universe or another one disconnected from our own), multiverse for a set of disconnected space-times, and multidomain universe to refer to a model of the whole of a single connected space-time in the sense of chaotic inflation models. universe.
Protogalaxies Moving forward to after the existence of matter, more information is coming in on the formation of galaxies. It is believed that the earliest galaxies were tiny "dwarf galaxies" that released so much radiation they stripped gas atoms of their electrons. This gas, in turn, heated up and expanded, and thus was able to obtain the mass needed to form the larger galaxies that we know today.Current telescopes are just now beginning to have the capacity to observe the galaxies from this distant time. Studying the light from quasars, they observe how it passes through the intervening gas clouds. The ionization of these gas clouds is determined by the number of nearby bright galaxies, and if such galaxies are spread around, the ionization level should be constant. It turns out that in galaxies from the period after cosmic reionization there are large fluctuations in this ionization level. The evidence seems to confirm the pre-ionization galaxies were less common and that the post-ionization galaxies have 100 times the mass of the dwarf galaxies. The next generation of telescopes should be able to see the dwarf galaxies directly, which will help resolve the problem that many astronomical predictions in galaxy formation theory predict more nearby small galaxies.
Physical structure
Size Very little is known about the size of the universe. It may be trillions of light years across, or even infinite in size. A 2003 paper[20] claims to establish a lower bound of 24 gigaparsecs (78 billion light years) on the size of the universe, but there is no reason to believe that this bound is anywhere near tight. See shape of the Universe for more information. The observable (or visible) universe, consisting of all locations that could have affected us since the Big Bang given the finite speed of light, is certainly finite. The comoving distance to the edge of the visible universe is about 46.5 billion light years in all directions from the earth; thus the visible universe may be thought of as a perfect sphere with the Earth at its center and a diameter of about 93 billion light years.[21] Note that many sources have reported a wide variety of incorrect figures for the size of the visible universe, ranging from 13.7 to 180 billion light years. See Observable universe for a list of incorrect figures published in the popular press with explanations of each.
Shape An important open question of cosmology is the shape of the universe. Mathematically, which 3-manifold best represents the spatial part of the universe? Firstly, whether the universe is spatially flat, i.e. whether the rules of Euclidean geometry are valid on the largest scales, is unknown. Currently, most cosmologists believe that the observable universe is very nearly spatially flat, with local wrinkles where massive objects distort spacetime, just as the surface of a lake is nearly flat. This opinion was strengthened by the latest data from WMAP, looking at "acoustic oscillations" in the cosmic microwave background radiation temperature variations.[22] Secondly, whether the universe is multiply connected is unknown. The universe has no spatial boundary according to the standard Big Bang model, but nevertheless may be spatially finite (compact). This can be understood using a two-dimensional analogy: the surface of a sphere has no edge, but nonetheless has a finite area. It is a two-dimensional surface with constant curvature in a third dimension. The 3-sphere is a three-dimensional equivalent in which all three dimensions are constantly curved in a fourth. If the universe were compact and without boundary, it would be possible after traveling a sufficient distance to arrive back where one began. Hence, the light from stars and galaxies could pass through the observable universe more than once. If the universe were multiplyconnected and sufficiently small (and of an appropriate, perhaps complex, shape) then conceivably one might be able to see once or several times around it in some (or all) directions. Although this possibility has not been ruled out, the results of the latest cosmic microwave background research make this appear very unlikely.
Etymology The word "universe" is derived from Old French univers, from Latin universum, which combines uni- (the combining form of unus, or "one") with versus (perfect passive participle of vertere, or "turn"). The word, therefore, means "all turned into one" or "revolving as one" or "orbiting as one".
Name of our Universe In the same way that the Moon refers to our (Earth's) moon, the Universe is used by some cosmologists to refer to our Universe. In this article, the Universe is equivalent to our observable Universe. Theoretical and observational cosmologists vary in their usage of the term the Universe to mean either this whole system or just a part of this system.[2] As used by observational cosmologists, the Universe most frequently refers to the finite part of space-time. The Universe is directly observable by making observations using telescopes and other detectors, and by using the methods of theoretical and empirical physics for studying its components. Physical cosmologists assume that the observable part of (comoving) space (also called our universe) corresponds to a part of a model of the whole of space, and usually not to the whole space. They use the term the Universe ambiguously to mean either the observable part of space, the observable part of space-time, or the entire space-time. In order to clarify terminology, George Ellis, U. Kirchner and W.R. Stoeger recommend using the term the Universe for the theoretical model of all of the connected space-time in which we live, universe domain for the observable universe or a similar part of the same space-time, universe for a general space-time (either our own Universe or another one disconnected from our own), multiverse for a set of disconnected space-times, and multidomain universe to refer to a model of the whole of a single connected space-time in the sense of chaotic inflation models. universe.
Protogalaxies Moving forward to after the existence of matter, more information is coming in on the formation of galaxies. It is believed that the earliest galaxies were tiny "dwarf galaxies" that released so much radiation they stripped gas atoms of their electrons. This gas, in turn, heated up and expanded, and thus was able to obtain the mass needed to form the larger galaxies that we know today.Current telescopes are just now beginning to have the capacity to observe the galaxies from this distant time. Studying the light from quasars, they observe how it passes through the intervening gas clouds. The ionization of these gas clouds is determined by the number of nearby bright galaxies, and if such galaxies are spread around, the ionization level should be constant. It turns out that in galaxies from the period after cosmic reionization there are large fluctuations in this ionization level. The evidence seems to confirm the pre-ionization galaxies were less common and that the post-ionization galaxies have 100 times the mass of the dwarf galaxies. The next generation of telescopes should be able to see the dwarf galaxies directly, which will help resolve the problem that many astronomical predictions in galaxy formation theory predict more nearby small galaxies.
Physical structure
Size Very little is known about the size of the universe. It may be trillions of light years across, or even infinite in size. A 2003 paper[20] claims to establish a lower bound of 24 gigaparsecs (78 billion light years) on the size of the universe, but there is no reason to believe that this bound is anywhere near tight. See shape of the Universe for more information. The observable (or visible) universe, consisting of all locations that could have affected us since the Big Bang given the finite speed of light, is certainly finite. The comoving distance to the edge of the visible universe is about 46.5 billion light years in all directions from the earth; thus the visible universe may be thought of as a perfect sphere with the Earth at its center and a diameter of about 93 billion light years.[21] Note that many sources have reported a wide variety of incorrect figures for the size of the visible universe, ranging from 13.7 to 180 billion light years. See Observable universe for a list of incorrect figures published in the popular press with explanations of each.
Shape An important open question of cosmology is the shape of the universe. Mathematically, which 3-manifold best represents the spatial part of the universe? Firstly, whether the universe is spatially flat, i.e. whether the rules of Euclidean geometry are valid on the largest scales, is unknown. Currently, most cosmologists believe that the observable universe is very nearly spatially flat, with local wrinkles where massive objects distort spacetime, just as the surface of a lake is nearly flat. This opinion was strengthened by the latest data from WMAP, looking at "acoustic oscillations" in the cosmic microwave background radiation temperature variations.[22] Secondly, whether the universe is multiply connected is unknown. The universe has no spatial boundary according to the standard Big Bang model, but nevertheless may be spatially finite (compact). This can be understood using a two-dimensional analogy: the surface of a sphere has no edge, but nonetheless has a finite area. It is a two-dimensional surface with constant curvature in a third dimension. The 3-sphere is a three-dimensional equivalent in which all three dimensions are constantly curved in a fourth. If the universe were compact and without boundary, it would be possible after traveling a sufficient distance to arrive back where one began. Hence, the light from stars and galaxies could pass through the observable universe more than once. If the universe were multiplyconnected and sufficiently small (and of an appropriate, perhaps complex, shape) then conceivably one might be able to see once or several times around it in some (or all) directions. Although this possibility has not been ruled out, the results of the latest cosmic microwave background research make this appear very unlikely.
