• Question: How big was the big bang?

    Asked by bradfordj2011 to Alan, Caspar, Diana, Murray, Sarah on 23 Mar 2011 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Alan Winfield

      Alan Winfield answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      Well, I would say literally the biggest thing ever!!

      To find out how big in terms of energy, for instance, you should head over to the space zone and ask them. (Although it may be that even astrophysicists can’t work this out.)

    • Photo: Sarah Thomas

      Sarah Thomas answered on 18 Mar 2011:

      According to recent measurements, it is believed that the big bang occurred around 13.7 billion years ago. There was a hot, dense phase in existence where suddenly a reaction occurred that lead to a chain of reactions, that lead to the birth of our universe. This is called the big bang. When this happened, the universe was tiny, high density, packed with temperature and pressure, and rapidly expanding and cooling. Approximately 1 /37th of a second later, there was a cosmic inflation and the universe grew exponentially. After the cosmic inflation stopped, the universe was a hot soup of plasma and particles. Temperature was around 1 billion Kelvin and the particles were flying around at massive speeds when SUDDENLY an unknown reaction took place and matter and antimatter was born. A few minutes later, neutrons combined with the first protons to form the first atoms of hydrogen and helium!

      So short answer then, the big bang must in fact have been very small since the universe it made was so tiny!!

    • Photo: Caspar Addyman

      Caspar Addyman answered on 18 Mar 2011:

      It was the size of the whole universe. Though at the very, very beginning, the first tiny fractions of a second, it was very small. (i’m not sure exactly how small)

      Since the universe is still expanding (exploding) you could say ithe big bang is still going on.

    • Photo: Diana Drennan

      Diana Drennan answered on 18 Mar 2011:

      As big as EVERYTHING !! The theory is that the big bang was the beginning of the universe, that all the stuff in the universe, ALL of it, was in one infinitely small place. Then, it exploded and eventually became the universe as it is now.

    • Photo: Murray Collins

      Murray Collins answered on 23 Mar 2011:

      I think infinitely small (a quantum singularity) but then also infinitely large, as it created the universe. Hmm, this isn’t my area though so would refer you to the space zone for an answer from the physicists!

Comments