The universe is everything. All the space and time are in the universe and its other contents are the stars, galaxies, and planets. It also consists of other forms of energy and matter. There is only cosmological proof for the development of the universe and it is the Big Bang Theory.
According to the studies and the theory which followed it is said that space and time emerged together 13.799±0.021 billion years ago and since then the universe is continuously expanding.
We don’t know the size of the entire universe due to the technological constraints that humans have today and it may be correct to say that it would be close to impossible even if we had that technology. The universe is so vast we can’t even imagine.
There is estimation, that the minimum diameter of the universe is 23 trillion light-years, and the measurable part of it which we call the observable universe is approximately 93 billion light-years in diameter.
The observable universe is a spherical-shaped region of the universe. As the region is named “observable universe” it clearly states that this region is what we can observe from Earth or its space-based technologies and exploratory probes at present.
We say ‘present time’ as the electromagnetic radiation from these objects takes time to reach our solar system and to us at Earth due to cosmological expansion.
It is assumed that the observable universe consists of 2 trillion galaxies but the number changed to only several hundred billion based on the new data from New Horizons.
The distance to the edges of the observable universe is almost the same as it is also assumed that the universe is isotropic. The isotropic nature means that the observable universe seems like a ball that is centered on the observer.
Different locations in the universe have their observable universe, for example, it differs when calculated from Mars.
The main reason for using the word observable is due to the speed of light. The word observable refers to the physical limit which is created by the speed of light. Let us get it cleared.
Nothing can travel faster than light which also includes signals, so there is a maximum distance which is called the particle horizon beyond which nothing can be detected and we can’t see or get signals from anything beyond it.
What does the observable Universe consist of?
Redshift survey which is used to measure the redshift of astronomical objects and to estimate its distance from the Earth, and mapping of various wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation have gained much information on the contents and character of the universe.
The organization of universe structure begins at the stellar level. The stars are organized in a galaxy which is further organized in galaxy groups then galaxy clusters, superclusters, walls, and filaments which are separated by huge voids, forming a foam-like structure called the cosmic web.
We can see that it is a hierarchical structure that goes up to the walls and filaments. Beyond this, there seems to be no structure and is often referred to as the end of Greatness.
Even the observable universe consists of beautiful stars, black holes, exoplanets, and nebulas. So wouldn’t it be amazing to know what the whole other undiscovered part of the universe has?
The Universe still has many mysteries for humans to solve and hopefully we can because the answers to the secrets of the universe will give us answer to every question we have. The universe is a beautiful place and everything starts and ends here.
Written by: Bhavish Doshi
Edited by: Gourav Chowdhury
.png)
0 Comments