Can scientists recreate the big bang?
According to the big bang theory, billions of years ago the entire universe spanned an area of zero volume and infinite density. Then, this area expanded, doubling in size hundreds of times in less than a second. During those earliest moments, the universe was filled with energy, much of it in the form of intense heat. As the universe grew and cooled, some of this energy transformed into matter. When we talk about the building blocks of matter, we usually concentrate on atoms. Atoms consist of a nucleus that contains at least one positively-charged subatomic particle called a proton. The nucleus might also contain one or more neutrally-charged particles called neutrons. Negatively-charged particles called electrons surround the nucleus, moving quickly around it within the confines of an energy shell. But in the earliest stages of the big bang, atoms couldn’t form.
