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The earliest universe: What happened in the first second of the universe's creation?
The history of the universe is a mystery that humans have been exploring for a long time, especially the first second of the birth of the universe. According to research published in 2015, the birth of the universe dates back to 13.8 billion years ago. The physical conditions during this period were crucial to the later formation and evolution of the universe, but what happened in this short moment? Scientists divide the formation of the universe into stages to tease apart the impact of these early events.
Overview of the five stages of the universe
The history of the universe can be roughly divided into five major stages, including:
- The very early universe
- Early Universe
- Dark Ages and the Formation of Large-Scale Structures
- The current appearance of the universe
- The distant future and the ultimate fate of the universe
The very early universe
The earliest seconds of the universe, especially the trillionth of a second, were characterized by a period in which the laws of physics may have yet to hold, the development of the four fundamental interacting forces, and its rapid expansion. The tiny fluctuations formed at this time will become the basis for the structure of the universe in the future. The physical phenomena of this period are still difficult to verify experimentally.
During these moments, the very existence of matter and the basic makeup of the universe is extremely hot and unstable.
Early Universe
About 380,000 years after the birth of the universe, various subatomic particles were formed one after another, including almost equal amounts of matter and antimatter, but most of them quickly annihilated each other, leaving only a small part of matter. About 100,000 years later, the temperature of the universe dropped to the point where neutral hydrogen atoms could form, making the universe transparent for the first time.
After hundreds of thousands of years, these neutral hydrogen atoms met in different regions and combined with each other to form the basis of galaxies and stars.
Dark Ages and the Formation of Large-Scale Structures
This phase lasted from 380,000 years to about 1 billion years and is called the Dark Age of the Universe. Although the universe has become transparent, the formation process of the first stars and galaxies is extremely slow. It wasn't until about 200 million to 500 million years ago that the formation of early galaxies began to significantly affect the structure of the universe.
The current appearance of the universe
Since about 1 billion years ago, the structure of the universe has gradually formed, and it mainly consists of the galaxies and star clusters observed today. About 500 million years ago, the thin disk of the Milky Way began to form, and later the solar system followed. At this time, the expansion rate of the universe changes over time, and eventually enters the stage of the modern universe dominated by dark energy.
The distant future and the ultimate fate of the universe
As for the future universe, scientists still have questions. The predictions come from a variety of possible scenarios, based on current understanding of the universe and recent advances in physics.
The current expansion of the universe has entered an accelerated stage, what will be its future destiny?
In this brief second, the fundamental forces and material structure of the universe evolved over time into the vast universe we know today. There are still countless questions to be answered about how all of this came to be, including: What are the mysteries of the universe that have yet to be revealed?
