The word "Universe" is known to everyone from early childhood. It is him that we remember when we raise our heads and, holding our breath, look at the endless sky filled with the lights of the stars. We ask ourselves, “How infinite is our universe? Does it have specific spatial boundaries, finally, is it possible to find the place where the center of the Universe is located?
What is the Universe
This term is commonly understood as the whole variety of stars that can be seen not only with the naked eye, but also with the help of optical instruments, such as a telescope. It contains many galaxies. Since we cannot yet see the Universe in its entirety, its boundaries are also inaccessible to our eyes. It may well turn out that it is completely infinite. It is also impossible to determine for sure its shape. Most often it is presented in the form of a disk, but it may well turn out to be spherical or oval. And no less controversy arises around the question of where the center of the universe is.
Where is the center of the universe
There are various theories to explain this concept. So, we can recall Einstein's theory of relativity: according to it, the center of the universeany point relative to which measurements are made can be considered. Over the years of the existence of mankind, the view of this problem has undergone major changes. It was once believed that it was the Earth that was the center of the universe and the entire universe. According to the ancients, it had to have a flat shape and rely on four elephants, which, in turn, stand on a turtle. Later, the heliocentric model was adopted, according to which the center of the universe was located on the Sun. And only when scientists realized that the Sun is just one of the celestial stars, and not the largest, ideas about the center of the universe came to the form we have today.
The concept of the center of the Universe in the Big Bang theory
The so-called "Big Bang Theory" was proposed to the entire astronomical community by Fred Hoyle - a famous physicist - as an explanation for the emergence of the Universe. To date, it is she who is perhaps the most popular in various circles. According to this theory, the space that our universe now occupies resulted from a very rapid, explosion-like expansion from a negligible initial volume. On the one hand, according to all human ideas, such a model should have not only well-defined boundaries, but also a center located in the place from which, in fact, the expansion began. But there are matters that are simply impossible for people living in a limited three-dimensional space to imagine. So is the pointwhich is the astronomical center of space, may be located in another dimension inaccessible to us.
Hubble Space Telescope Research
Recently there have been reports in the media that the Hubble Space Telescope has taken a series of images of the core of our Universe. And a certain city was discovered in the center of the universe, from which galaxies scatter like a fan. It is not yet possible to explore it in detail, because it is too far away.
Wherever the point of the astronomical center of our Universe is, we will not be able not only to reach it, but even just to see it.
