15 Interesting Facts About the Universe

Introduction:

With every passing day we discover more amazing and interesting facts about the Universe that surrounds us. The Universe is a vast place with no boundaries, and yet we manage to uncover pieces of it, by the relentless exploration and captivating creativity. Whether it’s the marvellous twinkling of the stars at night, or the spectacular details of other galaxies, there’s so much to learn about the Universe. Here are fifteen interesting facts about the Universe that you probably didn’t know before.

Fact 1: The Universe is expanding.

In 1929, the famous astronomer Edwin Hubble discovered a very interesting fact about the Universe – it is continually expanding in all directions. This means it wasn’t always the size that it is today, and will grow larger over time. This phenomenon is known as the ‘expanding Universe’, and it is largely attributed to Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity.

Fact 2: The Universe is 13.7 billion years old.

This might come as a surprise to many, especially if you’ve heard much older estimates of the age of the Universe. The exact age is not known, and is subject to debate amongst the scientific community. But according to the Big Bang Theory, the Universe is believed to have been created 13.7 billion years ago.

Fact 3: The galaxies are moving away from us.

This is another amazing fact about the Universe – galaxies that are far away from us are actually moving away from us at very high speeds. This is believed to be caused by the ‘expanding Universe’ – all galaxies are becoming further apart as the Universe continues to expand in all directions. This phenomenon is known as the ‘redshift’.

Fact 4: There are an estimated 100 billion galaxies in the Universe.

The exact number of galaxies in our Universe is not known, but it is estimated that there are at least 100 billion galaxies in our Universe – and potentially many more. Each galaxy is believed to contain at least hundreds of billions of stars, so this brings the total number of stars in the Universe to hundreds of trillions – if not more.

Fact 5: The stars are all different.

The stars appear the same to us, but they are actually all different. They might be the same size and colour, but they have different chemical compositions, temperatures and ages. Some stars are young, while some are old and dying – and they all have different levels of brightness.

Fact 6: The centre of the Milky Way is not visible.

The Milky Way is our home galaxy, and is an immense collection of stars, planets, gas, dust and dark matter. However, the centre of the Milky Way is not visible from our planet, as it is hidden behind clouds of intergalactic dust and gas.

Fact 7: The Sun is not the same as the other stars.

The Sun is an important part of our Solar System, and of course the main source of energy here on Earth. But did you know that the Sun is not like other stars? It is much brighter and has a much higher temperature than other stars, and its life cycle is different too.

Fact 8: The Universe is filled with dark matter.

Most of the Universe is made up of mysterious dark matter – matter that is believed to be entirely invisible and not detectable by any of our instruments. While dark matter makes up around 85% of the Universe, the other 15% is filled with ordinary matter, and a tiny fraction of radiation and energy.

Fact 9: Galaxies come in different shapes and sizes.

Galaxies come in all shapes and sizes – and even colours. Some galaxies are big and round, while others are small and irregular. And some galaxies are even blue – this is because they contain more young stars than other galaxies.

Fact 10: The Universe contains black holes.

Black holes are incredibly fascinating objects in the Universe – they are objects that are so massive that even light cannot escape their powerful gravitational pull. Black holes are believed to be formed after a very big star dies, and can be seen throughout the Universe.

Fact 11: The Sun will die in about 5 billion years.

The Sun has provided energy for our planet for billions of years, and it will continue to do so for many more years to come. However, in about 5 billion years the Sun will eventually run out of fuel and will swell up to become a Red Giant. The Earth will be destroyed in this process.

Fact 12: The Big Bang Theory is the most widely accepted theory.

The Big Bang Theory is the most widely accepted theory that explains how the Universe came into existence and evolved over time. According to the Big Bang Theory, 13.7 billion years ago the entire Universe was contained in a single point – a point that contained all of the matter and energy in the Universe.

Fact 13: The Universe is filled with mysterious pulsars.

Pulsars are incredibly strange objects – they are incredibly dense stars that spin incredibly fast, and they emit huge amounts of energy in the form of beams of light and radiation. Hundreds of these mysterious pulsars have been discovered in the Universe, and more are sure to be discovered in the future.

Fact 14: We can see the oldest light in the Universe.

Due to the expansion of the Universe, light from objects that are far away from us is stretched out over time. This means that we can see what’s called ‘cosmic background radiation’ – the oldest light in the Universe. This light dates back to about 380,000 years after the Big Bang.

Fact 15: The Universe is filled with stars that are not visible to us.

The stars we can see in the night sky are just a tiny fraction of all the stars in the Universe. Studies have shown that the Universe is filled with billions of stars that are too far away from us to be seen. Many of these stars might even have planets orbiting around them – just like our Solar System.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are so many interesting facts about the Universe that most of us are probably unaware of. The Universe is truly a fascinating place, and it can be quite humbling to contemplate the immense size and complexity of the Universe, and all the amazing secrets it contains.