Scientists confirm universe had growth spurt after the Big Bang
- 10 years ago
At Harvard University, even more evidence of Albert Einstein's genius.
Scientists here say they now have proof confirming his theory about how the universe grew so big, so fast, after the Big Bang.
For years, they've had a hunch that the universe went through a growth spurt just after the Big Bang --- expanding faster then the speed of light.
That rapid development or inflation, they believe, was possible because of ripples, also known as gravitational waves that could both stretch and squeeze space and time.
Until now, however, they had yet to see one.
(SOUNDBITE) MARC KAMIONKOWSKI, A PHYSICIST OF JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY AND ONE OF THE RESEARCHERS ON THE COLLABORATION, SAYING:
"This detection is cosmology's missing link. It's something that we thought should be there, but we weren't really sure and it has been eagerly sought now for two decades. This is not something that's just a home run, but a grand slam."
Scanning the sky from the South
Scientists here say they now have proof confirming his theory about how the universe grew so big, so fast, after the Big Bang.
For years, they've had a hunch that the universe went through a growth spurt just after the Big Bang --- expanding faster then the speed of light.
That rapid development or inflation, they believe, was possible because of ripples, also known as gravitational waves that could both stretch and squeeze space and time.
Until now, however, they had yet to see one.
(SOUNDBITE) MARC KAMIONKOWSKI, A PHYSICIST OF JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY AND ONE OF THE RESEARCHERS ON THE COLLABORATION, SAYING:
"This detection is cosmology's missing link. It's something that we thought should be there, but we weren't really sure and it has been eagerly sought now for two decades. This is not something that's just a home run, but a grand slam."
Scanning the sky from the South