Origin of the Universe, Solar

System, and Earth

Pulok Kanti Deb, Lecturer, PME, SUST, Sylhet-3114, Bangladesh

Lecture Overview :
•Galaxies are islands of stars making up the
universe
•How and when did the:
–Universe Form?
–Solar System / Earth Form?
•How Do We Know?
•Galaxies, Stars and their evolution.
•Solar system to Earth - Earth’s differentiation
 A theory of the beginning….
• Scientists believe the solar system began
forming 10 to 12 billion years ago as swirling
(ঘূর্ণনরত) gas and dust formed a thick core. The
core, with most of the mass, collapsed around 5
or 6 billion years ago and later became the sun.

• The remaining matter swirled into a disk. Some

of it crashed together and formed planets. That's
the main theory, at least, and though most
scientists think that's how it happens, there are a
few other explanations.
 Alternate theory to beginning of
Universe
The Big-Bang Theory says that
the entire universe came to be in
a huge explosion about 15 billion
years ago. Nobody ever believed
this idea until Edwin Hubble
discovered the redshift of galaxy
light in the 1920s, which seemed
to suggest a bigger universe.
However, our ability to test this
theory and others have gotten
better with modern telescopes
covering all wavelengths, some of
them in orbit. Although many
people believe this theory there is
no physical proof that it actually
happened.
 The Big Bang Theory
• The most popular theory for the origin of the Universe is the Big Bang Theory, according to which the Universe
expanded to its present enormous volume from an initial miniscule starting volume. This expansion has taken place
over the past 10 or so billion years. Astronomers believe that at this point in time, the beginning of the Universe and the
beginning of time, all the matter of the Universe was concentrated in an infinitely small volume and was in a state of
infinite density.
• Two observations, both made during the 20th Century have profoundly shaped the way in which we think about our
Universe and have lead to the Big Bang Theory for the origin of the Universe. First was the discovery by Edwin
Hubble that our Universe is expanding. Second was the discovery made in 1965 by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson
that our part of the Universe is filled with microwave radiation. This radiation has become known as the Cosmic
Microwave Background.
• It was during the 1920's that Edwin Hubble provided the first evidence that we live in an expanding Universe. Hubble
discovered that there is a simple relationship between the distance to a remote galaxy and the redshift in the spectral
lines from that galaxy. This redshift is know as the cosmological redshift (Astronomers through Spectroscopy
subdivides light into its constituent colors — violet to red — and identifies from the presence of spectral lines, the
chemical elements which are present in the star). These measurements strongly indicated that galaxies appear to be
moving away from us with speeds proportional to their distance.
• One of the predictions of the Big Bang model for the origin of the Universe is that the initial explosion was extremely
hot and that the remnants of the initial fireball might still be detected at the edges of the Universe. The discovery in the
1960s by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson of the Cosmic Microwave Background coincided with the work of some
theoretical physicists who showed that if the Universe began with a hot Big Bang, then the Universe should be filled
with electromagnetic radiation cooled from the early fireball to a temperature of around 10 degrees above absolute zero
(~10°K).
• Alternative Big Bang models are concerned with the curvature of space. Over the past 20 years there have been three
competing models arguing that space may be flat, positively curved, like a ball or negatively curved, like a saddle. The
results of these recent studies have allowed an in-depth study of competing Big Bang hypotheses, and provide
confirmation that the Universe is 'flat', i.e. finely balanced between expanding forever or collapsing back into a 'big
crunch'.
 Early History of the Universe
• Matter as we know it did not exist at the time of
the Big Bang, only pure energy. Within one
second, the 4 (Four) fundamental forces were
separated:
1. Gravity: The attraction of one body toward another
2. Electromagnetic Force: Binds atoms into
molecules, can be transmitted (প্রেরণ) by photons
3. Strong nuclear Force: Binds protons and neutrons
together in the nucleus
4. Weak nuclear Force: Breaks down an atom’s
nucleus, producing radioactive decay
 Time Layout & Events
• 10-43 s - gravity separates from other forces - 10-28
centimeters
• 10-35 to 10-32 s - fundamental particles - quarks and
electrons - softball
• 10-6 s - quarks combine into protons and neutrons -
solar system
• 1 s - electromagnetic and weak nuclear forces separate
• 3 minutes - protons and neutrons combine into atomic
nuclei
• 105 years - electrons join nuclei to make atoms; light is
emitted
• 105-109 years - matter collapses into clouds, making
galaxies and stars
Summary: Timeline of the Universe
Possible Fates of the Universe

“Some say the world will end in fire, others say in ice.” – Robert Frost
 When Did the Universe Form?

• 10 to 20 billion years ago (15)

• How do we know?
– Spreading (Red Shift)
– Know distances, rates of retreat, relative
positions
– Pervasive (পরিব্যাপক) background radiation of
2.7°C above absolute zero
– Afterglow of the Big Bang
 How old is the Universe?
• Extrapolate the current expansion rate (Hubble constant) back
to the Big Bang:
- Speed x time = distance
(distance of a particular galaxy) / (that galaxy’s velocity) = (time)
– or
-4.6 x 10^26 cm / 1 x 10^9 cm/sec = 4.6 x 10^17 sec
– ~ 15 billion years
– 10 to 20 billion years old
• Look for the oldest stars (in globular clusters)
– 11 to 18 billion years old
• Best current estimate is13.4 ± 1.6 billion years
 Galaxies & Stars
• As the Universe began to evolve, some regions began to emerge in which
concentrations of the gases hydrogen and helium was higher than elsewhere.
These formed the basis for the development of what we now recognize as
galaxies. Today galaxies are huge concentrations of stars, and display a
number of types based upon their shape. They might also be thought of as
the birthplace of stars. Galaxies range in size from 80,000 to 150,000 light
years in diameter. [A light year is the distance travelled, at the speed of light
in a year.] Within this huge volume, galaxies contain very large numbers of
individual stars. There are at least 10 billion galaxies in the Universe.
• Galaxies formed, perhaps within the first million years of the history of the
Universe, by the inward gravitation collapse of the early matter of the
Universe, thus enhancing the difference between regions where there was
matter and regions where there was none. In homogeneities within galaxies,
coupled with further gravitational collapse, are the basis for star formation.
• A galaxy starts to form by the accumulation of hydrogen gas in a very large
cloud, called a Nebula. At this stage the gas cloud is huge compared with the
later size of a galaxy. As matter aggregates in a growing nebula the internal
gravity draws in more gases.
• Eventually the nebula develops localized 'clumps' of gas, which continue to
grow into even denser gaseous bodies — stars.
 Evolution of Stars
Most stars evolve onto the Main Trend and then into the Dwarf stage as follows:
1. Development of a large cloud of increasingly dense hydrogen (and helium) gas and dust.
This giant molecular cloud contains molecular hydrogen at low temperatures (hundreds
of °K). This is a Nebula and within the nebula aggregates of gas and dust form the
beginnings of a star.
2. Temperatures rise, driven by gravitational collapse and a Proto-star forms at about 2000-
3000°K.
3. The star subsequently evolves to be part of the main sequence of stars. The precise
position on the main sequence depends upon the mass of hydrogen present in the star. At
this point in its life temperatures in the core of the star are as high as 107°K. Nuclear
fusion takes place within the centre of the star and helium is formed. At temperatures
above 108°K He reacts through nuclear fusion to form heavier elements. Whilst stars are
part of the Main Sequence developmental stage planetary formation may take place.
4. The star eventually converts into a Red Giant and expands to up to 100 times the
diameter of the original star. Red Giants develop as the hydrogen in the core is depleted
and the helium derived from it tries to burn to carbon. A Red Giant is sometimes
described as a 'bloated' star.
5. The final stage of stellar evolution depends upon star size. Smaller stars end up as the
surviving cores of Red Giants which become greatly reduced in size to the White Dwarf
stage. Larger stars shed nearly all their remaining gaseous matter and synthesize elements
in a supernovae - a huge explosion marking the end of the life of the star. Within the
dense supernovae, neutron stars may form as the extremely dense endpoint in the life of a
star.
Solar System Configuration
What’s in the Solar System?
• Sun
• 9 planets
• > 93 moons orbiting planets
• Asteroids
– 6 (>300 km diameter)
– >7000 (<300 km diameter)
• Comets (a few km diameter)
• Meteoroids (<100 meters diameter)
• Dust
 Origin of Our Solar System
Solar Nebular Hypothesis / Theory
The orderly nature of our Solar System led most astronomers to conclude that its
members formed at essentially the same time and from the same primordial
material. This proposal is known as the Nebular Hypothesis (1796: P. S. de
Laplace), suggests that the bodies of our solar system formed from an enormous
cloud composed mostly of hydrogen and helium with only a small percentage of the
heavier elements.
Processes involved:
1. A huge rotating cloud of gases and dust (Nebula) begins to contract.
2. Large eddies of gas and dust remain far from the Proto sun. Most materials is
gravitationally swept towards the centre, producing the SUN. However, due to
rotational motion some dust & gases remain orbiting the central body as a
flatten disk.
3. The proto-planets (Planets in the making stage) begin to accrete from the
material that is orbiting within the flatten disk.
4. In time most of the remaining debris was either collected into the nine planets
and their moons or swept out into space by the Solar wind.
5. The removal of debris allowed sunlight to heat the surfaces of the newly formed
planets.
 The Nebular Theory* of Solar System
Formation
Interstellar(তারামণ্ডলার্গত) Cloud
*
It is also called the
(Nebula) ‘Protoplanet Theory’.

Gravitational Collapse

Protosun Protoplanetary Disk

Heating  Fusion Condensation (gas to solid)

Sun Metal, Rocks Gases, Ice

Accretion Nebular
( বিবৃদ্ধি) Capture

Leftover Materials Terrestrial Jovian Leftover Materials

Asteroids Planets Planets Comets

A Pictorial Gravitational
Collapse

History
Interplanetary Cloud Condensation

Accretion Nabular Capture

Origin of Our Solar System
 Solar System Facts
1. Each planet is relatively isolated (বিচ্ছিন্ন)in space.
2. Orbits of planets are nearly circular.
3. Orbits of planets lie in nearly the same plane.
4. The direction in which planets orbit the Sun is the same direction in which
the Sun rotates on its axis.
5. The direction in which most planets rotate on their own axis is roughly the
same as the direction the Sun rotates on its axis. (exceptions: Venus, Uranus,
Pluto)
6. Most of the known moons orbit their parent planet in the same direction that
the planets rotate on their axes.
7. Our planetary system is highly differentiated (পৃথক).
8. Asteroids are very old and exhibit a range of properties not characteristic of
inner or outer planets or their moons.
9. Comets are primitive, icy fragments that do not orbit in the ecliptic plane and
reside primarily at large distances from Sun.
 Exceptions to the Rules
• Most planets rotate in the same direction that they orbit.
– Uranus and Pluto rotate nearly on their sides.
– Venus is upside-down and rotates “backward”.
• Most large moons orbit their planet in the same
direction that their planets rotate.
– Triton (Neptune’s large moon) goes opposite
direction.
• Terrestrial planets have no moons (Mercury, Venus) or
very small moons (Mars).
– Earth’s Moon is one of the largest in solar system.
The Sizes of the Sun and the planets
(1:1010)
 Titius-Bode “Law”
Predicted Planet Distance From Sun
an = 0.4 + 0.3 x 2n-2 for n = 2,3,4,...
Observed location
• Planet 1: 0.4 AU • 0.39 AU Mercury
• Planet 2: [0.4 + (0.3 x 20)] AU = 0.7 AU • 0.72 AU Venus
• Planet 3: [0.4 + (0.3 x 21)] AU = 1.0 AU • 1.0 AU Earth
• Planet 4: [0.4 + (0.3 x 22)] AU = 1.6 AU • 1.5 AU Mars
• Planet 5: [0.4 + (0.3 x 23)] AU = 2.8 AU • 2.8 AU Ceres
• Planet 6: [0.4 + (0.3 x 24)] AU = 5.2 AU • 5.2 AU Jupiter
• Planet 7: [0.4 + (0.3 x 25)] AU = 10.0 AU • 9.5 AU Saturn
• Planet 8: [0.4 + (0.3 x 26)] AU = 19.6 AU • 19.2 AU Uranus
• Planet 9: [0.4 + (0.3 x 27)] AU = 38.8 AU • 30.1 AU Neptune
• 39.5 AU Pluto
 Classifying the Planets

• Two distinct groups of planets when classifying by

structure and composition:
– Terrestrial planets
• Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars
– Jovian planets
• Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
 Planets condensed from material in the nebula but, because the
nebula was stratified with respect to temperature and composition
the planets are different in composition.

Hot Cold

Fe, Al, Ca Ice (H,C,N)

sun Jupiter
Mars
Earth
Mercury Venus
Asteroid Belt

Earth-like Planets Jovian Planets

 Terrestrial Planets: Summary
• Small size
• Low mass
• High density
• Mostly rock and metal composition
• Solid surface
• Atmospheres: from near vacuum to dense hot gas
• Rotation rate: Earth, Mars ~ 24 hrs, Mercury ~ 2
months, Venus ~ 8 months
• Few moons: Earth – 1, Mars – 2, Mercury and
Venus – 0.
• No rings
• Close to Sun (within 1.5 AU) and closely spaced
with warmer surfaces.
 Jovian Planets: Summary
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
• Large size
• High mass
• Lower density
• Gaseous composition: mainly hydrogen, helium, & H-
compounds
• No solid surfaces - atmosphere thickens and merges with liquid
interior over small rock/metal core
• Atmospheres - dense, varying composition
• Rotation rates: Rapid compared to terrestrial, (0.38 to 0.72) *
rotation rate of Earth
• Large ring systems
• Moons: numerous and varied in composition
• Farther from Sun and widely spaced with cool temperatures at
the cloud tops.
Origin of Comets and Asteroids
Asteroids
• Rocky leftover planetesimals of the inner solar
system.
• Most of the asteroids are concentrated in the asteroid
belt between the orbit of Mars and Jupiter.
• Jupiter’s strong gravity might have disturbed the
formation of a terrestrial planet here.
• Jupiter also affects the orbit of these asteroids and
sent them flying out of the solar system, or sent them
into a collision cause with other planets.
Comets
• Icy leftover planetesimals of the outer solar system.
• Comets in between Jupiter and Neptune were
‘bullied’ away from this region, either collide with the
big planets, or been sent out to the Kuiper belt or the
Oort cloud.
• Comets beyond the orbit of Neptune have time to
grow larger, and stay in stable orbit. Pluto may be (the
biggest) one of them.
 Origin of Earth
 There are number of hypotheses (Rotating Gas Cloud,
Ionize Clouds, Collapsing of Gas Cloud, Random Capture Model
etc.) for the origin of the earth. The most widely discussed one is
Nebular Hypothesis, Which says-
A huge rotating cloud of dust & gases (Nebula) begins to
contract
Most of the material is gravitationally swept toward the
center, producing Sun.
Due to rotational motion some dust & gases remain
orbiting the central body as flattened disk, which later
accreted to form planets & moons or swept away in the
space.
Our Cosmic Origins
(Nebular hypothesis)
 Where did the moons come from?
Giant Impact
• Our moon may have been formed in a giant impact between the Earth and
a large planetesimal…
Captured Moons
• Phobos & Deimos of Mars may be captured asteroids.
• Triton orbits in a direction opposite to Neptune’s rotation
• Comet Shoemaker was captured by Jupiter, then crashed

Capture of Comet Shoemaker by

Jupiter
Heating & Differentiation
 Shortly after the Earth formed, the decay of
radioactive elements, coupled with heat released by
colliding particles, produced at least some melting
of the interior. Melting, in turn, is thought to have
allowed the heavier elements, principally iron and
nickel, to sink, while the lighter rocky components
floated upward. This segregation of material,
which began early in the Earth’s history, is
believed to still be occurring, but on a smaller
scale. As a result of chemical differentiation, the
Earth’s interior is not homogeneous. Rather, it
consists of shells or spheres composed of materials
having different properties.

 The principal divisions of the earth include:

I. A solid iron rich inner core
II. Molten metallic outer core
III. Semi solid to Solid rocky layer mantle
IV. Lighter outer skin - crust
Layered Earth: Internal Structure
Earth Within the Universe
 Take Home Assignment # 1
1. Assume there is life in other group of Local Cluster
of the Universe. Write down your postal address to
get a letter from the other group of the Local Cluster
of the Universe.
2. What are the things appeared into happen from the
Big Bang to 1 billion year?
3. Configure our Solar System and level the elements
& characteristics of the system?