From the March 2007 issue

Where in space did the Big Bang happen?

Brian McDonald, Walton Beach, Florida
By | Published: March 1, 2007 | Last updated on May 18, 2023

Key Takeaways:

  • The universe began from a tiny, incredibly hot, and dense point.
  • The Big Bang describes the universe's expansion, not an explosion.
  • This event happened approximately 13.7 billion years ago.
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At the time of the Big Bang, some 13.7 billion years ago, the entire universe was concentrated in a single point. This point had an extremely small size — much smaller than the size of any known particle — and an incredibly high density and temperature. The term “Big Bang” actually refers to the moment when the universe started expanding, as opposed to some kind of explosion as the event’s name implies.