The Big Bang Theory and Universe Expansion

Vocabulary flashcards covering the Big Bang, space expansion, cosmic inflation, and matter creation.

The Big Bang

The leading scientific theory explaining the origin and evolution of the universe, stating that about 13.8 billion years ago, space began expanding rapidly from an extremely hot, dense state, eventually cooling to form atoms, stars, and galaxies.

Expansion of Space

An expansion of space itself everywhere at once, rather than an explosion of matter outward from a single central point.

Cosmic Inflation

A brief period of hyper-rapid expansion in the earliest fraction of a second that smoothed and flattened the universe.

Cooling and Matter Creation

The process as space expanded where energy converted into fundamental particles and radiation, eventually forming simple atomic nuclei like hydrogen and helium.