Using GRBs to Probe the Young Universe
TNRTB Archive – Retained for reference information
Astronomers used a gamma-ray burst (GRB) to probe the properties of the early universe and confirm the hot big bang picture, which forms the basis of RTB’s creation model. The Swift satellite measured the spectrum of a GRB explosion that occurred when the universe was only 3 billion years old. Using the spectra, scientists determined that the host galaxy of the GRB contained 1% of the fraction of metals (elements heavier than helium) comprising the sun even though the galaxy contained abundant dust. This result accords with a hot big bang model, where heavier elements are produced in multiple generations of stars that explode in supernovae events, spewing metals into the interstellar and intergalactic media. Thus, the hot big bang picture continues to pass each observational test, further strengthening RTB’s cosmic creation model.
- Hsiao-Wen Chen et al., “Echelle Spectroscopy of a Gamma-ray Burst Afterglow at z = 3.969: A New Probe of the Interstellar and Intergalactic Media in the Young Universe,” Astrophysical Journal Letters 634 (2005): L25-28.
- https://iopscience.iop.org/1538-4357/634/1/L25
- Related Resource
- Hugh Ross and John Rea, “Big Bang—The Bible Taught It First!”
- Product Spotlight
- Beyond the Cosmos, 2nd ed., by Hugh Ross