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The descriptive view of cosmogenesis is described by the big bang theory that was developed over a period of several decades through the effort of a number of scientists as follows:
- The ability to determine the material composition of stars through spectral analysis was developed in the 19the century by Fraunhofer, Kirchhoff, and Bunsen.
- Henrietta Leavitt, an American astronomer, discovered the relationship between the period of luminosity and the absolute magnitude of stars called cepheid variables. This allowed astronomers to measure galactic distances.
- In 1914 Vesto Slipher announced that characteristic spectral lines observed in the light from nebulae were not at frequencies one would expect; instead they were shifted toward the red end of the spectrum. There was no explanation although a red-shift in spectral lines meant that the object was moving away from the observer.
- In 1916 Einstein introduced the General Theory of Relativity. When Einstein solved the equation for the universe he found the solution predicted an expanding universe. In order to conform to the existing paradigm that held that the universe was static(non-expanding). He attempted to produce a solution for a static universe and eliminate the expansion by adding a “fudge factor” called the cosmological constant.
- In 1922 Alexander Friedman, a Russian, found that Einstein made a mathematical mistake and even with the cosmological constant, the relativity equation predicted an expanding universe.
- In 1924 Edwin Hubble focused the new 100 inch Mt. Wilson telescope on individual stars in the Andromeda nebulae and measured the distance using the technique developed in 1912 by Henrietta Leavitt. The extremely great distance to Andromeda that he found made him realize that the nebula was outside our Milky Way galaxy and that the universe was much greater than our galaxy and the universe contained many galaxies.
- In 1929 Hubble analyzed the Slipher’s red shift data from what had now been proven to be very distant galaxies and noticed that the more distant a galaxy from our own, the larger the red shift. This meant that the farther away the receding galaxies were from our galaxy, the higher the velocity of recession. This could only mean that the universe was expanding.
- In 1931 Father Georges Lemaitre independently recreated the Freidman model, realized that if the expansion was real, reversing the expansion in time meant that the universe one time the universe had to have been infinitely small object that he called the ‘primeval atom’.
- In 1948 George Gamow and his student Ralph Alpher applied classical thermodynamics and nuclear physics to the primeval atom and predicted that the remnants of the expansion would be a background of energy measuring about 5 degrees Kelvin. In addition, this work also predicted the relative abundance of lithium and beryllium by a process of nucleosynthesis.
- In 1948 Fred Hoyle, Thomas Gold, Herman Biondi argued against the Big Bang theory’s implied beginning to the universe by proposing the Steady State Theory that hypothesized that the expansion of the universe was the result of the continuous creation of matter. The additional space cause the universe to expand in size. Hence the universe had no beginning and wasn’t created, and God wasn’t required. During an interview on a radio broadcast Hoyle facetiously gave the hypothesis the name “big bang theory”.
- In 1964 Jim Peeples, Robert Dicke, et.al at Princeton University, apparently without knowledge of Gamow’s prediction, offered their own prediction that there should be a detectable remnant of the big bang; the remnant has since become known as the cosmic background radiation (CBR). They were constructing an instrument to search for such a signal from space; when they were informed that two BTL engineers at Holmdel, NJ, Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson, were troubled by a noise from all parts of the sky while setting up a radio telescope to be used for wireless communication. The Princeton group realized that the remnant of the big bang that they and Gamow’s group predicted was the “noise” observed by Penzias and Wilson, thus verifying the big bang theory. The Steady State theory was abandoned by most cosmologists
- In 1980 Alan Guth introduced the inflation theory to solve the horizon problem.
13.Subsequently the prediction of the distribution of light elements was also verified by observation added validation of the theory. The observed distribution of galaxies in the various stages of evolution provides additional support for the big bang theory. - The big bang has been established as a scientific theory in spite of the paradigmatic desire to find a way around it with multiverse theories, a desire rooted in the anathema many scientists have for the implication that the big bang was a creation event that raised several questions that non-believers try to avoid. For example: What came before and exists beyond the universe? What was the impetus for the big bang? Why is there something rather than nothing? How does space expand? The answers to these are questions all depend on the answer to the more basic question: Is the universe finite?