• Question: What drove cosmic inflation?

    Asked by docryan to Hermine, Katy, Laura, Nathalie, Paula on 16 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Hermine Schnetler

      Hermine Schnetler answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      The energy that caused the big bang through the universe out from a single point and continues to drive it for now. But research has many unanswered questions to address on this subject.

    • Photo: Nathalie Pettorelli

      Nathalie Pettorelli answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Hi there,

      I don’t think this has been solved – and no one really knows what triggered the phase transition leading to the cosmic inflation. You might want to check that with an astrophysicist though 😉

    • Photo: Katy Mee

      Katy Mee answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Cosmis inflation – although the rapid rate of expansion in the early stages of the universe’s development is quite extraordinary, it’s got nothing on the Zimbawean dollar…..

    • Photo: Laura Dixon

      Laura Dixon answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Some kind of negative vacuum that occurred shortly after/during the ‘big bang’.
      You’ll have to forgive me, this is not my area of expertise! lol

    • Photo: Paula Salgado

      Paula Salgado answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Dear docryan

      That is a very difficult question and I really had to ask for help from an friend who is an astronomer. Even she had trouble explaining it to me!…

      From what I understand, this is a theoretical expansion of the early universe and as such, it’s not fully understood and what could have caused…

      For more on the subject, I have to refer you to the wikipedia info:

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation_(cosmology)

      According to my astronomer friend, it’s an accurate description of the phenomenon.

      Sorry I couldn’t explain better! 😉

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