Guest Writer
The Big Bang has long been considered the most influential event in the history of the universe… But could we be wrong?
If you think about it, all science actually is, is a culmination of theories that just haven’t been disproved yet. We once thought the Earth was flat. The atom was indivisible. Even Einstein thought the universe was not moving. I think we can say with confidence that new technology shows us the world is not flat; the electron, proton and neutron are inside atoms; and the universe is most definitely not static (orbits and the fact that the universe is expanding disproved that one). So, it is not so inconceivable that the most fundamental theory in current physics has been debunked. But has it?
On Christmas Day, 2021, the James Webb telescope was launched. It was built in the Netherlands and launched from the Guiana Space Centre. What was found by the telescope was forty-four previously unseen galaxies!
The galaxies the James Webb telescope found were some of the earliest galaxies we’ve ever seen. Was there something unexpected about them? Yes, yes there was. These galaxies were bigger than we expected. Also, they were more structured than scientists first thought they would be. An astrophysicist, Alison Kirkpatrick, said after the images were received on Earth, "Right now I find myself lying awake at three in the morning, wondering if everything I've ever done is wrong.". This was the quote that led to many articles about the big bang theory being disproved.
Was it disproved? No. There were some aspects of the results that were slightly unexpected, but they only show that the rate of expansion we thought the universe was undergoing was a little inaccurate. The big bang theory is still considered one of the most pivotal discoveries in current physics.
The many articles claiming that the big bang theory had been disproved were derived from a misinterpretation of Kirkpatrick’s quote. The notion went viral even though there was no evidence to suggest it was true. The original article claiming the fall through of the big bang theory was written by Eric Lerner, who has tried to deny the big bang theory for years. As other reporters latched on to the story, this misinformation became common knowledge. The panic caused for astrophysicists, including Kirkpatrick who received many phone calls from people wondering if she really believed what she had allegedly confirmed to the press, was enormous.
The power of the media had thousands of people believing the most fundamental theory we know of was untrue… What else could they persuade you of?
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