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Stars can be seen bursting into existence in this picture of the galaxy M82, captured by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. The galaxy is located in the constellation Ursa Major, about 12 million light-years away. This is just about the nearest place where the conditions are similar to those that existed when the universe was young and vibrant with starbirth. M82's star formation rate is tens or even hundreds of times higher than that of a normal galaxy. That may be due to a close encounter with another galaxy — perhaps with M81, its neighbor. A close brush between the two galaxies would have sent a shock wave coursing through M82.
M82 is seen nearly edge-on in this picture, with the galactic disk crossing from about 10 o'clock to 4 o'clock. Low, medium and high-energy X-rays are colored red, green and blue respectively. So far, eight very bright X-ray sources have been seen to undergo clear changes in brightness, and Chandra's scientists suggest that they mark the locations of black holes that are pulling in material from massive companion stars. The picture was unveiled this week at the American Astronomical Society's winter meeting in Seattle. Check the Chandra X-ray Center's website to learn more.
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bursting into existence- absolutly mesmerizing. I like how the blue is at the center. I have a theory that stressed metal gives off higher e x-rays than non metals, wonder if this merits a perdiction for heavier metals in the galaxy's center. This picture is too nice for the ubuntu screen saver...gotta put it on a windows machine!!..thanks for the link, I went straight over there to see what chandra has been up too lately. After reading up a bit I see that the most important piece of information is WHEN was the picture taken as the sources change in energy levels over time.
It looks like that split second after you first light a match. Amazing. Astronomy is not my strong suit. So I have a question for those in the know - Is this THE big bang? or just one of many early universe events? Or just related to the big bang? And how is it the big bang could be in one particular direction or place?
No, this is not the Big Bang. We can never see the big bang. If we want to see the big bang, we must be outside of our own universe looking in (I'm still a freshman engineer - so I do not know the details on this). Now, the big bang is basically an expansion of the Universe. We believe that our universe used to be extremely small - and the Big Bang is basically an expansion. Now, with this expansion - objects in space do not get fixed to the same spots. They actually move away from each other as the Universe expands.
Do an image search of "expanding universe". You will probably see a picture of a conical model with different planes. Each plane represents a point in time. Observe the dots on each plane. There usually are the same amount of dots, but you have to look at the distance. As the conical shape gets wider on the diagram - the older the Universe is. Notice that the dots are further apart. I was told by Physics professor that there is no way to determine the center of the Universe from this - because from every point of view, the other celestial objects will appear as if they're moving away from you. So, it doesn't matter if you're on the Milky Way or M82. It will appear as if you're at the center.
Please correct me if my information is wrong.
I am here -
Cool info. Thanks!
Just as a clarification, we can't see the Big Bang because the universe was too hot for its first ~380,000 years. During this time, temperatures were so high that protons and electrons could not form atoms. They simply existed as a "haze" of ions. This state was not transparent to radiation. A photon could travel only a very short distance before being reabsorbed, thus making the universe opaque. Once the universe cooled sufficiently, the protons and electrons could form atoms and the universe became transparent to radiation. Photons created at this time are still travelling to us (and everywhere) from the "surface of last scattering" and make up the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB). The CMB is essentially the earliest light we can see, it provides one of the key pieces of evidence for the Big Bang, and you can see it in the static on your TV!
no way to watch it as the ultimately primordial you is smack dab in the middle of that ball of energy/matter. it will take 15 billions years for enough cooling and element formation to occur before our blink of time will come so we can conceive the concept of the big bang. boggles the mind!
What we're seeing here is the collapsing of giant clouds of gas and dust into stars (called starbursts) due to tidal effects being exerted by the encroaching galaxy. This is a relatively common occurrence throughout cosmic space and time, especially in the younger universe.
The Big Bang can be thought of as the eruption of the universe into being some 13.7 billion years ago from a point source. It is continuing to expand. The further away a galaxy is (and the further back in time), the faster it is moving away from us (and the faster we are moving away from the galaxy - same thing). At some point the motions of distant galaxies are faster than light, that defines the limits of the observable universe. It's important to understand that these distant objects are being carried away with the expanding spacetime - they are not sailing through static space at faster than the speed of light, which is impossible.
It's quite harmonious to watch science models showing two galaxies merging. It's like watching a dance from afar but the unimaginable chaos that must be going on within has be jaw dropping.
Awesome Seed!
WOW!
That is a picture. I just hope that there was no UFOs flying close to that thing.
I allways read the same thing about the expanding universe. not ever going to stop expanding, question: how did it get to its compact state in the first place?. Could it be just a cyclic event? kind of expansion and contraction.
Jess, even though the known universe looks compact in images or renderings you have to take in account that the universe, as we can see it, is billions and billions of light years in distance spread out in several directions.
Light travels at 186,000 miles per second, so if you look out 250,000,000 light years from earth, it would take the light that you see 250,000,000 earth years to see it from its current location. Very cool in my opinion but at the same time should be very humbling for scientist to be quick to think we understand it all.
Your question is one that Einstein once struggled with and he seemed to believe that it would expand forever based on the mathematical laws of physics, time, and space.
I think that is part of the beauty of it all is that we can theorize and contemplate the nature of something so missive and so beautiful.
You got your light years wrong. Something like 6 trillion miles a year. And the universe spreads out in every direction. They tell us stars are so far apart that when galaxies collide, stars do not collide. They tell us Hubble has looked back almost to the beginning of the big bang. The "man" said time is relative. So think of it this way: the light from our sun took 8 mins. to get here. We see it now, but it was 8 mins. ago. I am glad to see people explaining stuff to us laymen. "We are all small men when the stars come out at night."
You are both right. In one year light will travel 6 trillion miles and speeds at 186, 000 miles per second.
How cool! Absolutely fantastic image :)
I cannot get the idea of the "Big Bang" when there is no area of the observable universe that is completely void of material or stars. Maybe there should be a "graveyard" of black holes in the actual center of the observable universe, but there has been no mention of this. Second, we on earth have not been able to sustain the nuclear reactions believed to occur in stars even with the most sophisticated equipment costing billions of dollars, and we are asked to believe that "dust" in "clouds" somehow, for some reason, combine with such density that this action spontaneously creates enough heat to self combust AT THE NUCLEAR LEVEL. ALL THIS IN A VACUUM! I cannot get my head around that. We are asked to believe in "inflation" to the extreme, where there is a slow die off of stars into brown dwarf's and black holes. I think the "end" is when all black holes collide CREATING ANOTHER BIG BANG. Extreme density and magnetism created by super sized black holes will cause a contraction of space time in the opposite direction making the final density another singularity, then the last straw will be just one more Higgs particle added to the mess causing another BIG BAND. HOW ABOUT THAT?
Think of it this way, what happens when you take any type of matter and compress it under extreme pressure? Heat is generated, Now take that same concept and apply it to the hydrogenthat is gathering to form a star, say that the star is going to be one like out sun, you are talking about a large super massive amount of material that is being compressed tighter and harder as gravity pulls the matter together until eventually a critical point and temp is reached that starts Nuclear Fusion, once that starts the balance of the fusions of hydrogen explosive force is balanced by the force of gravities inward push you have a star.
Stars dye off when they use up their supply of hydrogen, helium ect. Our Sunwill die off, it doesnt have enough mass to explode.
Check out History Channels Universe TV show its a great show and explains a lot of things in layman terms.
spell check please
I've got that. I just cannot understand how a molecule such as hydrogen ,being the least mass single atom known, can generate enough heat through compaction in a vacuum to generate the heat needed to go nuclear. Can you think of our heaviest element going nuclear? Then this should be the matter we need to test for the compatibility of producing cold fusion. It is so compact already there should be less energy needed to fuse it to hydrogen? There is "theory" involved with all things and i for one find it very hard to understand why there is no 'empty" observable universe. There should be so many black holes and their gravitational signatures out there that we should be able to "observe" their positions. We look for the energy spectrum "light, micro-wave, ultra violet, etc. how do we look for gravitational signatures and their sizes. We see them in the sun's coronal discharges, they also must generate from a black hole. This bothers me.
its really amazing.what truly God made is the most beautiful and good thing that will ever exist.many people are relating this to the theory of earth's genesis,alright;that may be also true.what leaves me gaping is that what gives this objects the instability for them to burst?
Russel,
I think your on the right track, At some point the motions of distant galaxies are faster than light, that defines the limits of the "observable universe".
Scottie; Increase sensor range!
When the Big Bang started, there must have been "something" around the area of the Big Bang. Some type of "space" or room if you will. If we are saying that all the matter and energy in the Universe collapsed into the tiniest space which created the means for the Big Bang, then what was left around that tiny dot of matter and energy? It had to have been empty "space". So when the Big Bang occurred, matter just started to go back to where it was in the beginning. Nothing can go anywhere without room to do so.
What had exploded couldn't have been the only matter there. If it was "space" as we know it, then our Universe is pushing on something else's "space". I would think there are probably more Universes than we will ever know of. Mankind has the capacity to believe they are the only ones that can have something for themselves.
I thought that I was looking in to see what I 've become. And in the past I stood before. With lust and cared not for rest. My thoughts they may have carried me, with currents I entrust. Having called upon the troubled winds to carry out my dust. Winter chills the falling days until they charm my crush. And sticking to my better plan I say its all a bust. A moment comes A moment goes til fall with such a hush. Better cry the tears of sorrow then to leave us with mistrust. Never leave the room for some they say they must. A chance to find a grander line of colors in the dusk. A harold hero of grand design a Universal Dream I might enslave my closest freind to cross the spacios seas. Ive gather up my tempered laws and curse them til they plead The hate I ve tried to flee from meets me with such glee. Falling from the skies my wings are made of steel or something that my love would never come to appeal Cracking from the years Ive waited to burst inside with fear To wake the morning that I ve just started to leave my love sinsere
spell check please
There must be a black hole at the center. Amazing shot that drives home the formation of stars.
I miss cosmic log. It's been 3 days. Where are you?
I'm back ... I took an extra day off for MLK Day. Stay tuned for the torrent to begin anew.
No such thing as a BIG BANG. God created EVERYTHING in 6 days and on the 7th day he rested because there was nothing else to do. Read your bible.
And God had 6 days? Why did God need a day? Couldn't he do as he pleased? If you have faith I am glad for you, but you must use that GOD GIVEN BRAIN TO THINK. Read your Bible that was written generations AFTER that point in history. I can just imagine your great grandchildren reciting verbatim the words you spoke to your family at the most troubled time in your life. I do not think you need to answer that, because you can't. The Bible is a book that has been manipulated over and over through out history, if you can't see that then I feel sorry for you. The universe is God, we are his "work", and that is why we have this conversation, TO FIND OUR GOD. Not the religion, but the essence of everything.
now i'm no specialist,but just what i like to think of as a well informed person and this is my answer to some of the pervious postings.
what was the universe around the big bang? my guess would be neutral space not empty or sup nor hyper,but plain old neutral neither posatively nor negatively charged. the the forced chamber explosion of the big bang caused the polar shifts to ionic particals leading to atomic formation.
ray hard to explain in words how this works but if you look back to i think 2004 an experiment done on the space shuttle answers this for you and like all great things it was an accident.lol.but it involves clear plastic drink containers salt and sugar in the wieghtless ness of space. look it up i don't want to ruin the ending for you.