the big bang theory
under scrutiny
備受
考驗的
大爆炸理論
By Wing In Chau
鄒穎姸
In
the 1940s, three scientists namely,
Hermann Bondi, Thomas Gold, and Fred Hoyle
put forward the now obsolete, Steady State
Theory. The theory stated that the universe is
continuously expanding through the creation
of new matter at the same rate as old matter
becomes unobservable, suggesting that the
universe is space- and time- homogeneous.
In other words, the universe does not change
at any place or time with neither a beginning
nor an end. However, with the advancement
of radio astronomy in the 1950s, evidence
piled up against the Steady State Theory. In
particular, it was found that extragalactic
radio sources (signals from outside of our
galaxy) scatter differently from closer galaxies,
cont radict i ng the space - homogeneous
property of the universe suggested by the
Steady State Theory. Today, scientists generally
accept that our vast and expansive universe
came to be through the Big Bang.
Unlike the term insinuates, the Big Bang
was not, in fact, an explosion of any kind.
Instead, the theory offers the explanation
that, approximately 13.7 billion years ago,
our universe began as a singular ity – an
infinitesimally small, hot and dense zone that
defies the laws of physics and consisted of no
matter. It then underwent a sudden, dramatic
period of expansion, where matter was able
to be formed, and continues to expand today
(albeit less dramatically). What this means
is that all the matter within the universe is
moving away from each other, since the
space between is getting larger. In
1964, evidence supporting the
Big Bang was accidentally
f o u nd i n t h e f o r m o f
what is known as the
cosmic microwave
background. It
is explained
a s t h e
leftover radiation during the early stages of the
universe where expansion was happening faster
than the speed of light, during which atoms
were formed after the universe cooled and were
unable to absorb the thermal radiation.
While widely accepted, it should be noted
that the Big Bang theor y is a model for the
evolution of the univer se and not the only
plausible theory. In a recent paper published
last year, two physicists, Ahmed Farag Ali and
Sauya Das, constructed a new model by revising
the quantum equations and trajectories [1]. In
this new hypothesis, the universe is said to be
filled with a quantum fluid possibly consisting
of hypothetical particles called gravitons. The
model eliminates the potential existence of part
of the Big Bang theory – that is, the singularity. It
concludes that the age of the universe is infinite
and possesses no beginning or end. The
problem with the Big Bang theory is the
inclusion of the singularity. The Big
Bang does not take into account
any t h i ng t hat happened
be f o r e o r d u r i ng t h e
f o r m a t i o n o f t h e
singularity.
W h i l e
th i s new
