What is Cosmology?
•Cosmology is the scientific study of the origin, evolution, and structure of the
universe as a whole.
•It seeks to answer fundamental questions like: How did the universe begin?
What is its fate? What are its fundamental constituents?
•It combines principles from physics, astronomy, and mathematics.
The Big Bang Theory: The prevailing model for the
universe's origin
•Proposed that the universe began as an extremely hot, dense point that
expanded rapidly.
•The expansion continues today, leading to the universe's cooling and the
formation of structures.
•Key evidence includes the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation and
the abundance of light elements.
Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB)
•Remnant radiation from the early universe,
about 380,000 years after the Big Bang.
•It's a nearly uniform glow of microwave
radiation across the entire sky.
•Tiny temperature fluctuations in the CMB
provide clues about the early distribution of
matter and the seeds of structure formation.
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The Expanding Universe
•Observed by Edwin Hubble in the 1920s, galaxies are moving away from us.
•The further away a galaxy is, the faster it recedes (Hubble's Law).
•This expansion implies that the universe was once smaller and denser.
Dark Matter and Dark Energy
•Cosmological observations suggest that ordinary matter (atoms, stars,
galaxies) makes up only about 5% of the universe.
•Dark Matter (~27%): An invisible form of matter that interacts gravitationally
but not electromagnetically. It plays a crucial role in galaxy formation and
clustering.
•Dark Energy (~68%): A mysterious force driving the accelerated expansion of
the universe.
Structure of the Universe
•Galaxies are not randomly distributed but are
organized into a vast cosmic web.
•This web consists of galaxy clusters, filaments,
and vast empty regions called voids.
•The formation of this structure is a direct
consequence of the initial density fluctuations
and gravity.
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The Fate of the Universe
•The ultimate fate depends on the balance between the expansion rate and the
total mass-energy density.
•If dark energy continues to dominate, the universe will expand forever, leading
to a 'Big Freeze' or 'Heat Death'.
•Other possibilities include a 'Big Crunch' (if gravity eventually halts expansion)
or a 'Big Rip' (if dark energy becomes infinitely strong).
Current and Future Research
•Ongoing missions like the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) are providing
unprecedented views of the early universe.
•Projects like the Vera C. Rubin Observatory aim to map billions of galaxies and
study dark energy in detail.
•Understanding dark matter and dark energy remains one of the biggest
challenges in modern physics.