Science publishes landmark article, “Detection of Pristine Gas Two Billion Years After the Big Bang.”
Astronomers have found two clouds of gas that formed in the first few minutes after the Big Bang that created our universe, a new study reveals.
This discovery is the first time these gas clouds have been detected and adds more support to what is already the most widely accepted theory of how our universe came to be, astronomers said.
The primordial gas clouds were found to contain only the lightest elements — hydrogen and helium — that were created in the Big Bang. A few hundred million years later, clumps of these gas clouds condensed to form the first stars, which created and dispersed heavier elements throughout the universe.
The new observations appear to match the theoretical predictions about the chemical makeup of the early universe, said study leader Michele Fumagalli, a graduate student at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC).
“It’s actually a very nice confirmation of the theory, because the theory predicts that in the first few minutes after the Big Bang, things like hydrogen and helium were produced and no metals. So, this is the first time that we have a very strong observation and evidence that indeed this theory is correct. It’s good news for cosmology.”
Full article: Primordial Gas Clouds Reveal Glimpse of Big Bang’s Aftermath
(via myheadisweak)
