Science Term: edge of the universe

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edge of the universe

Definition/Summary

Two common questions about the Universe are 'where is the centre' and 'does the Universe have an edge'? According to modern cosmology, the Universe in fact contains neither a centre or an edge.

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Recent forum threads on edge of the universe

Breakdown

Physics
> Astro Cosmo
>> Cosmology

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Extended explanation

A common mental picture of the Big Bang is of an explosion occurring at some point in space that flings all the material of the Universe outwards from this point. In this picture, there is a central point where the Big Bang occurred and edge to the Universe, in terms of the material that had traveled furthest from the edge.

It is important to realise however that the above description bears no resemblance to the scientific theory of the Big Bang.

What Big Bang theory says is that the Universe was hotter and denser in the past. As we rewind the equations to see what the Universe was like earlier and earlier we see that the Universe was denser and hotter....

Commentary

cristo @ 02:58 AM Mar1-09

Please do not post comments here on whether or not you think the universe has an edge, or a centre, or anything else that disagrees with this article. If you wish to ask questions, please post them in the appropriate forum.

Thank you.

blaste @ 12:38 PM Nov25-08

Being an explosion of space and time, it had no form or shape. Now is it possible to describe such an event from anywhere except within it.

B. Elliott @ 11:30 AM May12-08

There are some excellent explanations by both Russ and Wallace in this thread which I don't believe could be more clearly stated ... http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=232453

"The universe has no center for the same reason that the surface of the earth has no center."

"In terms of their being a 'centre', the Big Bang theory says that the Universe is roughly the same everywhere, so there are no special points. A centre would be such a special point. Big Bang theory is compatible with the Universe being infinite. So at the earliest time we can describe it with current theories, the Universe was probably infinite in extent and everywhere very hot and dense. From this point, everything in the Universe began moving away from everything else. This expansion is uniform, in the sense that at all points it appears to an observer at that point that they are at the centre, since the rate of expansion in all directions is the same. There is no universal centre."

hrishikesh @ 06:37 AM May11-08

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edge_of_the_Universe

Wallace @ 07:25 AM Apr29-08

Unfinished (obviously!) feel free to add anything, particularly links. I'll get back to finishing the explanation soon if no one else has filled it in