Contrary to the six days of the Genesis story, current scientific evidence indicates that our Universe is 13.7 billion years old, having come into existence with the Big Bang. By 12 billion years ago, the galaxies (more than 100,000 of them) were forming across the outer edge of an expanding sphere, each composed of billions of stars with their planets, comets and asteroids. Within these galaxies, dying stars eventually exploded as supernovas, their gas and debris giving birth to younger solar systems surrounding a remnant black hole.
Our sun, a middle-aged star, ignited 5 billion years ago on an outer arm of the Milky Way Galaxy; it and its planets, comets and asteroids are all remnants of a supernova explosion. Indeed, all of the basic chemicals in the atmosphere, oceans, rocks and life forms of Earth (including we humans) were formed during that stellar explosion.
As awe-inspiring and humbling as these facts may be, religious individuals often point out that we have no scientific explanation for what preceded and caused the Big Bang. But what if that event, itself, was a massive supernova explosion within a much larger Universe? In other words, maybe our Universe has a parent Universe; maybe it has a grandparent Universe! Just some food for thought.
Our sun, a middle-aged star, ignited 5 billion years ago on an outer arm of the Milky Way Galaxy; it and its planets, comets and asteroids are all remnants of a supernova explosion. Indeed, all of the basic chemicals in the atmosphere, oceans, rocks and life forms of Earth (including we humans) were formed during that stellar explosion.
As awe-inspiring and humbling as these facts may be, religious individuals often point out that we have no scientific explanation for what preceded and caused the Big Bang. But what if that event, itself, was a massive supernova explosion within a much larger Universe? In other words, maybe our Universe has a parent Universe; maybe it has a grandparent Universe! Just some food for thought.
