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Trying to understand what happened in the past is always a complex task, but when scientists try to look all the way back to the very moments of the Big Bang, it can seem almost impossible.
Anytime researchers look at the moments after the Big Bang (and for billions of years after), they are essentially looking at models of what it may have been like. Some models end up working and being a possible explanation, and others fall apart along the way and can be ruled out.
A new study published in the Physical Review D seems to have a model for what was happening in the universe in the first seconds after the Big Bang, and it is incredible.
This model shows that within a second of the Big Bang occurring, there may have been cannibal stars, exotic bosons, and even black holes. Keep in mind, this would have all been before atoms really existed, making it even more impressive.
Other models have already suggested that there was a period known as the Early Matter-Dominated Era (EMDE) when the universe had far more matter than it does today, and this new model relies on that.
the authors of the study, Dr. Pranjal Ralegankar, Dr. Daniele Perri, and Dr. Takeshi Kobayashi of the International School for Advanced Studies in Italy looked into how particles would behave in this type of universe. They wrote the following about their findings:
“One intriguing possibility is that during this interval, matter temporarily dominated the universe.”
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This is very different than the universe of today, which is dominated by energy and dark energy. If the earliest moments of the universe were matter dense like the study suggests, it would have created what they call matter halos. The particles in the halos would have interacted, possibly combining to make very compact objects, including black holes.
The black holes would have eventually dissipated due to Hawking Radiation, but at the time they could have combined and influenced other things in the much smaller universe of the day.
This could have included Boson stars, which may still be around today, though none have been seen. Another possibility is that there were cannibal stars, which would be unlike the stars of today, but emit energy produced by the consumption of other stars and the resulting annihilation from the combination of matter and antimatter.
While this is certainly just a theory from a model, the researchers say that the math works, so it is a definite possibility. The bottom line is that whether they are right or wrong, the initial seconds of the universe were a wild time.
If you think that’s impressive, check out this story about a “goldmine” of lithium that was found in the U.S. that could completely change the EV battery game.