EARTH SCIENCE 11: The Formation of The Universe and the Solar System

Cosmology

The study of the physical universe.

Astronomy

The science of celestial bodies.

Mormon Cosmology

• A religious cosmology based on the Book of Mormon.

• Before the universe was created, there was already a pre-existing/mortal life.

• Creation was NOT ex nihilo.

Buddhist Cosmology

• A religious cosmology driven by karma.

• States that the universe consists of a large number of worlds.

Samsara

Refers to the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

Islamic Cosmology

A religious cosmology that states that Allah is the sole creator of the universe. He brought the universe to

Hindu Cosmology

A religious cosmology that states that creation is timeless.

Biblical Cosmology

A religious cosmology that states that God created the heavens and the earth.

Steady-State Theory

• Proposed by Hoyle, Bondi, and Gold.

• Suggests the universe has no beginning or end and maintains a constant average density despite its expansion, with new matter continuously created to form new stars and galaxies.

Big Bang

• Proposed by Georges Lemaitre

• The leading scientific explanation that the universe began from an extremely hot, dense point about 13.8 billion years ago and has been expanding and cooling ever since.

• It is supported by the presence of cosmic microwave background.

Cosmic Microwave Background

The oldest light in the universe, a faint microwave glow filling all of space, representing the afterglow of the Big Bang

Inflation Theory

• Proposed by Alan Guth

• A theory proposing a period of extremely rapid, exponential expansion of space in the first fraction of a second after the Big Bang.

String Theory

Posits the universe's fundamental constituents aren't point-like particles but one-dimensional, vibrating strings, with different vibrations producing different particles and forces.

M-Theory

• Proposed by Stephen Hawking & Leonard Mlodinaw

• A theory that unifies all consistent versions of superstring theory.

Kuiper Belt

• It is a vast, doughnut-shaped region of icy bodies and dwarf planets, including Pluto, located beyond Neptune's orbit in the outer solar system.

• It is named in honor of the Dutch astronomer Gerard Kuiper

Oort Cloud

• It is a theorized spherical cloud of billions of icy bodies, or comet-like objects, that surrounds the Sun and planets at the outermost reaches of the solar system, extending from about 2,000 to 200,000 astronomical units (AU).

• It is named after its proponent, Jan Oort.

Albert Einstein

The proponent of the theory of relativity.

Galaxy

Gravitationally-bound system of stars, interstellar gas, dust, and dark matter.

Orbit

An imaginary pathway.

Vortex Theory

• Proposed by Rene Descartes

• Posits that celestial bodies are carried along in whirlpool-like rotations of fluid or a substance called "vortices," explaining planetary motion through a mechanical rather than "action at a distance" principle.

Collision Theory

• Proposed by George Buffon

• States that the sun collided with a giant comet, and the resulting debris formed into planets.

Tidal Theory

• Proposed by James Jeans and Harold Jeffreys

• States that a speeding, massive star passed near the sun and pulled off material due to gravitational attraction. The torn-off material then condensed to form the planets.

Nebular Hypothesis

• Proposed by Immanuel kant and Pierre Simon Laplace

• States that a great cloud of gas and dust called a nebula contracted and flattened, which then formed the sun and planets.

Nebula

A great cloud of gas and dust.

Solar Nebular Hypothesis

• States that a nebula contracted and formed the sun and planets, with additional details such as accretion and differentiation.