The Big Bang:
Another pillar upon which Old
Earth beliefs rest is the Big Bang and the (proposed slow) expansion of the
Universe. However, recent discoveries are suggesting that something is wrong
with the Big Bang theory and the way it has been portrayed to the public.
That's because astronomers and cosmologists really DON'T have it all figured
out yet -- and they may not even be on the right track. For example, it
has been said that:
"The currently popular cosmological model is
subject to many doubts based upon observational data which suggest that,
perhaps, there never was a Big Bang." 1
This statement came from three highly respected astronomers and was published
in a prestigious scientific journal in 1990. More recently though, another science
article carried the following introductory headline:
"There's not one crisis but two: the
universe seems to be younger than the stars in it, and a huge chunk of it is
headed in the wrong direction, fast. As cosmologists scramble for
answers, no theory is safe anymore." 2
The theory of the Big Bang was first conceived as a result of the work of
American astronomer, Edwin Hubble. Hubble was the first to propose
the idea of an expanding Universe. 3 If he is correct, and if we could
travel back into the past, to the beginning of time, when it all expanded
(or so the theory goes), then there must have been a time when everything was clumped together into one tiny ball of matter. And then we are told that
something happened...
All of the sudden, this tiny clump of matter is supposed
to have exploded into a Big Bang, and then Vwuallah! Seven to 20 billion years
later (depending on whom you ask, and what year you asked them), here we are --
without any sort of Intelligence to plan out, or act upon any of that
matter. And this it still the ONLY viewpoint that is allowed to be taught
in our classrooms today; for any viewpoint that even HINTS at the (very strong)
probability of a Creator being involved is said to be off limits, and out of the
realm of "science" and therefore should not even be examined and
explored, or even mentioned.
Those who promote this theory also usually speculate that this small "clump" of matter,
that (supposedly) contained all the matter in the universe, was no larger than a golf ball.
In other words, the Big Bang theory speculates that out of a great chaotic
explosion came all of the order and complexity that we see around us today, with
no intelligence required to plan out, design or build anything. In reality
though, this theory is nothing more than an attempt by men (whose knowledge is
quite limited) to try and explain how they think we might have been created -- without
a Creator. For this reason, this theory goes hand in hand with the
theory of evolution, which is an attempt to do likewise. Small wonder that
those who promote this theory are also, more often than not, believers in
evolution.
In reality though, astronomers are not even sure that the Universe is
expanding. 4,5,6 That's because no one has ever seen it doing so.
Rather the expansion of the Universe (theory) is based on indirect evidence,
such as the red shift of many stars and galaxies.
Some scientists are also trying to tell us that the cosmic microwave
background radiation (or CMB) also supports the belief in an expanding Universe; however, as we shall see, the actual data appears to contradict
it.
Even if the Universe is expanding, speculative theories such as the Big Bang
still cannot account for the order and complexity that we see around
us. This is because, explosions are never observed to create (or result
in) order, but rather disorder and chaos. Also because we never
actually observe self-replicating
organisms, or anything even remotely similar to them forming by themselves in
laboratories or slime pools or ocean vents: nor have we been able to make one ourselves by (LOTS and LOTS of) DNA
programming (i.e. ordering), and organizing (i.e. planning, designing and
ordering) all sorts of different proteins
and even more complicated structures that are found inside of living organisms.
And even IF we do get to the point where we can DESIGN one, it takes an almost
preposterous amount of FAITH (as in wishful thinking) to expect or suppose that
the BLIND, and (for the most part) DESTRUCTIVE forces of mother nature could
(over any amount of time) accomplish the same feat.
However, in spite of these facts many scientists (apparently) WANT to believe
that (somehow), in a land far, far away, the impossible happened. Not only
that, but they also WANT us to do likewise. Its as if they WANT
to believe in anything but a Creator/God, even when that is where the evidence
clearly leads. Why this is we may never know: perhaps because they don't like the idea
that they were created by a Being FAR GREATER than they, or perhaps because they're upset that this Creator (of theirs) would dare to try to assert any control
over them and their
lives -- and especially not if it involves any of their time, talents, or money,
or more personal things, such as what they do with their free time. Or perhaps they
are simply afraid that their colleagues won't
approve of them if they were to admit that a Creator is, in fact, the best and
most logical explanation as to how we got here.
The Red Shift
There once was an astronomer whose name was Hubble. And Mr.
Hubble noticed that some stars have an orange or reddish color to them while
others are white or green or bluish. So Mr. Hubble theorized that this was because
they were either (in the case of orange or reddish stars) moving away from us, or (in
the case of bluish ones) moving toward us. For when one
considers that red colors have a longer wavelength than blue colors, and that a
glowing object that is moving away from an observer will have a stretched out
(or longer) wavelength than if it were stationary, or moving toward that
observer, then the idea of red shift (or that reddish colored stars or galaxies
are red because they are moving away from us) seems logical. And since
many stars outside of our own Milky Way galaxy are shifted to the red side of
the color spectrum, many scientists have interpreted this as evidence that the
Universe is expanding.
However, there are a few unexplained problems with the data: one of
which is that almost all of the most distant galaxies that we observe are blue-shifted.
7,8
This would seem to indicate that they are moving toward us, and
that the Universe is not expanding, but rather
imploding, or coming back together.
Another problem with regard to the red-shift / expansion theory concerns some
observations made by American astronomer William Tiff, and later
verified by British astronomers Bruce Guthrie and William Napier, who reported that:
"New evidence has been found to support the controversial claim
that the red shifts or nearby galaxies show a periodic pattern: that is, they
are 'bunched' together at regular intervals..." And
that "...new physics is needed to explain
them." 9
They also reported that the odds of the stair-stepped (periodic) pattern occurring in
the red shift were about 1 in 100,000.
This means is that, if the
Universe is (or at one time was) expanding, then it appears that the expansion
itself was controlled -- as opposed to being simply a randomly scattered outward
explosion. To those who reject the idea of (and belief in)
a Creator/God, this evidence may be unsettling; however, to those who believe in
God, such a concept it is
readily acceptable since we are told very plainly in Psalm 104:2 and Isaiah
40:22 (and various other places in the Old Testament) that God did, indeed, stretch
out the Heavens.
For a more detailed explanation of this, and how it is that we see stars and
galaxies that are supposed to be many thousands (or millions) of light years away, see
"Starlight
and Time" by D. Russell Humphreys,
Ph.D.
Another problem with the red-shift expansion theory is an observation by astronomers Halton Arp
and Fred Hoyle. For they have discovered galaxies with “very different red shifts”
that “appear to
be connected.”
9,10,11 See also Discovery Poses Cosmic Puzzle 10
and,
More evidence for galactic "shells". 11
Age Discrepancies:
Other problems also spell trouble for the Big Bang, such as measurements made by two separate teams of
astronomers contradict what
astrophysicists have been saying
for years: i.e. that:
"... there is almost no doubt that the oldest stars
in the Milky Way... are at least 14 billion years old." 12
Emphasis Added
However two separate studies by well respected
teams of astronomers, have indicated that the Universe is only 7-12 billion years old. This, of course,
presents a problem for cosmology, since:
"A universe younger than the stars it contains is,
to say the least, a fundamental contradiction." 12
Regarding these measurements, and other unexplained data, one
astronomer remarked that:
"It would be premature to panic... But if these
results are confirmed, we theorists will be in big trouble. We really
have no good ways of explaining these observations. 12
And regarding attempts to reconcile this age problem by
stretching the theoretical formulas that (supposedly) prove such great ages for
"old" stars, one astrophysicist said that:
"We really are happier with 17" 13
-- as in 17 billion years for the age of the oldest stars...,
and
that:
"The cosmologists are constantly pressuring us to
stretch this a little further, but believe me, we can't. And our group
consistently gets younger ages for the stars than most others do.
The stars could easily be as old as 19 or 20 billion years old, or even
older." 13
Other sources make similar statements, 14,15,16,17 such as:
"Reports that the big bang is dead may be premature. But the
theory that the universe originated in a single, gigantic explosion of matter
has definitely been dealt some savage blows in recent years."
14
And:
"Observations of red supergiant stars in a nearby galaxy... suggest
that the universe is less than 10 b.y. old... This is ... less than the
... age of some stars, posing an awkward problem for cosmologists." 18
In the above referenced article we note that Sandage and
Tamman came up with an age of between 13-17 billion years for the
universe, while Pierce, Ressler, and Sure came up with around 8 billion.
The latter group stated that:
"These values... imply that the Universe is only 7.6 to 9.6 b.y.
old." 18
Isn't it amazing how astronomers know so much about stars that they can
declare their ages just by
looking at them? And isn't it noteworthy how one team of astronomers can
come up with 13-17 billion years for the age of the universe, while a few years later another team
comes up with half that much. 19
Is it not possible, if not probable, that neither astronomers nor
cosmologists really know how old the universe is?
One of the problems is the fact that the Universe is quite large, and the stars and galaxies in it are too
far away to measure directly, or even with much accuracy. For example, it is said that:
"The speed of a galaxy can be deduced from its Doppler shift of the
lines in its spectrum. Most of the motion of nearby galaxies is caused by
the gravitational effects of their neighbors, so astronomers have to study
galaxies at least 20 or 30 million light years away to disentangle the effects
of the expanding universe." 19
The Big Bang's Shaky Foundation:
The evidence for the Big Bang consists of the following:
1. The alleged expansion of the Universe, based on the red shift.
2. The Microwave Background Radiation.
3. the abundance of helium in the Universe. 20,21
However, none of these evidences are proof of a big bang, since
each can be accounted for by things other than an explosion. 22
In this regard, the editors of New Scientist
remarked that:
"Never has such a mighty edifice been built on such
insubstantial foundations." 23
And that:
"... the big bang theory will definitely need some major
modifications if it is to survive into the future." 23
From Big Bang to Long (and Continuous) Smooth Bang
The Jan. 1997 issue of Discover
magazine stated that:
"...with the flood of (new) data, old ideas about galaxy
formation are toppling. Particularly imperiled is the notion that
virtually all galaxies came into existence at the same moment in the distant
past, emitting a collective burst of light like some grand fireworks
display." 24
And:
"Now... astronomers believe that galaxies..." (were
created) "not all at once but continuously ... over a period
of billions of years." 24
The only thing the author didn't tell us is what it was that made astronomers
change their "notion" about the "collective burst of light"
(i.e. their former belief in the Big Bang) and why they now think that new galaxies are
continually being created. However, the author did give a clue when she stated that
astronomers:
"... figured there was a precise era when galaxies were first
constructed, when all those islands of new stars 'turned on' in relative
unison... (they) therefore were looking for signs of a sudden eruption of light
in the distant cosmos." 24
And so...
"For years they probed the distant cosmos and came up empty
handed. They could say only that distant galaxies and clusters looked a
bit 'bluer,' a sign perhaps of heightened star formation. Young and
massive stars... tend to put out more blue light." 24
Or so we are told, at least.
If the Data Doesn't Fit, Change the Rules a Bit:
In effect, astronomers are now saying that many of the closer
galaxies are red shifted because they are moving away from us, but the furthest ones
are blue shifted, not because they are moving toward us, but because they are younger.
In other words, since
the (blue-shift-for-furthest-galaxies) data doesn't fit with the red shift
theory, for objects that are (supposed to be) moving away from us, and since we are not ready to
completely dump the Big Bang, then we'll simply
change the rules a bit, by saying that the furthest galaxies are blue
shifted, not because they are moving toward us, but because they are young,
while the red ones are red (not because they are old, but) because they
are moving away from us. In other words, they want it both ways.
For IF the Universe were indeed expanding, and IF the galaxies were all
created as the result of a Big Bang, then they would all have formed at about
the same time: meaning that the furthest galaxies should have the highest
degree of red shift (and actually be red, as opposed to blue). But since
they don't, astronomers are now saying that the blue color has nothing at all
to do with their motion, but is simply a sign of their age.
Perhaps astronomers and cosmologists really don't know all that much
about how our universe (and the stars in it) was created, nor even when it was created. In fact, they don't even know whether
or not it is expanding or collapsing. For those who doubt this,
consider the following remark from Astronomy magazine:
"Four years ago an ambitious pair of young astronomers ... looked
deep into the ... sky trying to confirm a prediction made by every
respectable cosmological theory. On very large scales, these theories
said, the universe should be moving just one way -- outward..."
"That is not the way it worked out. Instead, Laur and Postman
found that a huge chunk of the universe appears to be heading off ... toward
some far off point in the direction of Virgo..." 25
Laur and Postman's results sent shock waves through the world of
cosmology. If all that mass is moving away on so large a scale, then
the big bang was not as smooth and uniform as virtually all modern
cosmological theories demand. As one astronomer put it, 'If this
result is true then we know less than nothing.'" 25 Emphasis Added
Cepheid Variables and Great Distances
Because the universe is so large, astronomers are unable to measure distances to the overwhelming majority of stars and galaxies directly, but must devise other
(indirect) methods of doing so, such as the use of stars called Cepheid variables.
Cepheids are stars that vary
in brightness over time. The time it takes for them to go from their
brightest phase to their dimmest and back again is referred to as the
period. It usually varies from several hours to ten days. But
perhaps the most interesting thing about these stars is not that they vary,
but rather that the individual star's period is believed to be proportional to its
brightness, and therefore, it is also believed that:
"... the distance to a Cepheid can be calculated from its period
and its average brightness (or luminosity as observed from the earth)."
26
In principle, determining the value of the (believed) expansion rate of
the Universe (referred to as the Hubble Constant, or H.C.) is rather
simple, requiring only a measurement of distance and velocity. 26
And although it is said that: "... measuring the velocity of a
galaxy is straightforward, gauging the distance is rather difficult."
26 It should also be mentioned here that the "straightforward"
method used to determine a galaxy's velocity is its red shift, 26
and that determining the distance to a galaxy requires the use of a "variety
of complicated methods," each of which "has its advantages"
but none of which are "perfect." 26 In
addition, each of the methods requires the use of Cepheid Variables.
Difficulties with Using Cepheids to
Measure Great Distances
Even IF astronomers are correct in saying that a Cepheid's period is
related to its brightness, there are still assumptions which must be made in
order to use this technique to calculate how far away a given Cepheid is. And
even IF their assumptions are correct, there are still other significant
problems.
For example, it must be assumed that Cepheids with similar periods are also
the same size, and therefore the same brightness. While this may be a reasonable
assumption, it is an assumption nevertheless.
But then there is the
problem of Polaris: for although it is a Cepheid, its pulse "mysteriously
stopped beating" 28 for several years, and then, just as
mysteriously, started up again at a different pulse rate, and now it appears to
be slowing down again rather fast. 27,28,29,30,31
Another problem with using Cepheids as distances ladders (or yardsticks) is that their
luminosity can be diminished by space dust. To compensate
for this "astronomers either observe" (them) at infrared
wavelengths where the effects are less significant," or they "observe
them at many different wavelengths so they can assess the effects and correct
for them." 32
Then there is the local vicinity (or nearness) problem, since Cepheids are
"... bright
enough to be observed only in the nearest galaxies, not the distant ones."
32 And although we are told that nearby galaxies are
"participating in the
expansion of the universe, the gravitational interactions among the neighbors
may be causing some to move faster or slower than the rest of the universe"
32 -- except, of course, for the HUGE CHUNK (which we are a part of) that is moving
in the direction of Virgo. Therefore "... to calculate the Hubble
Constant, astronomers must accurately determine the distances to remote
galaxies, and the task is extremely difficult." 32
Emphasis Added
Translation: Although Cepheids are used as a "standard candle" to
measure distances, they are really not that foolproof, and especially when
it comes to measuring distances to far-off galaxies.
"Nevertheless," we are told that "astronomers have
developed several methods for determining distances to remote galaxies,"
32 but that:
"Because many of these techniques must be calibrated using the
Cepheid distance scale, they are considered secondary distance indicators ... Yet
scientists cannot reach a consensus about which, if any, secondary indicators
are reliable." 32
"Furthermore," (astronomers) "disagree about how they
should apply any of the methods and then whether they should adjust the
results to account for various effects that might bias the results."
32
What is CMB, and Why it Doesn't Support the Big
Bang:
CMB is short for Cosmic Microwave Background radiation.
It is supposed to be radiation left over from the
Big Bang that we are told occurred from 7-20 billion years ago.
Scientists were hoping they could point a directional radiation detector in a certain
direction in outer space, and come up with a greater amount
of radiation coming from that direction. They were hoping that such would be an indication of
the direction that the far off bang is supposed to have come from, and provide a
bit of confirmation for the Big Bang theory.
However, what they found is that no matter
what direction they pointed their detector in, they got (almost exactly) the
same result. This was a big disappointment to Big Bang theorists and required some fancy
footwork to "recover" (their theory) from.
Below are a few quotes with regard to this episode.
"...cosmic background radiation now seems to be
contradicting our very existence, by telling us that matter in the early
universe was distributed extremely smoothly, with no evidence of any lumpiness
out of which galaxies could have condensed." 33
And that:
"Another problem was the very smoothness of the
so-called background radiation. Large scale surveys of space have shown
that matter is not evenly distributed at all, but exists in the form of huge
clusters of galaxies, and even larger-scale clumping, including some huge
structures... like the Great Wall... while there are vast empty
reaches..." 34
They wanted some proof, and so:
"Big bang theorists decided that if they could find some variation or
ripples in the pervasive 3K radiation, this would be an adequate explanation of
the origin of the large-scale structures." 34
And so:
"To verify this prediction, NASA designed a special satellite
detector called COBE (Cosmic Background Explorer). COBE was launched in
1989; however, the expected ripples were never found." 34
But:
"By 1991, no variation had been detected and the big bang theorists
were beginning to panic. Then in April of 1992 a computer program was used
to analyze the data, and at last something was detected -- hot and cold spots
differing in temperature by up to about 3/100,000ths of a degree Celsius. 9"
34 Emphasis Added
Other possible explanations for these minute differences (other than a big
bang) are given in references 10-13 of this
paper. 34
Instrument sensitivity was not listed, but this is certainly also a
possibility.
What Scientists are Reluctant to Admit about Star
Formation Theories:
Cosmologists have theorized that stars form from huge clouds of gasses
(primarily hydrogen and helium) that somehow collapse in on themselves due to gravity. But this is only speculation.
The truth is that, as far
as we know, gasses resist being compressed. And the more they are
compressed, the greater the outward force becomes. However, in outer
space, there is nothing to keep a cloud of gas from moving (or expanding) outward
into a larger and larger area. There is also no proof that once a cloud of
gas gets so large it will somehow collapse in on itself. Therefore,
in outer space, the more gas there is, the more space that any given gas cloud
will take up. This is also why we (even today) still observe extremely
large clouds of gasses way off in outer space. And when we do so, they are
not always round, but take up all sorts of different shapes. And
although some stars may be nuclear furnaces with lots
of gas in them, we do not know how they came to be, nor have we ever actually
seen a new star turn on, or light up (i.e. come into existence).
35 Some may say that this is because it would take "millions of
years" for it to do so; however, such notions are nothing more than
fanciful excuses for a theory that is weak. For the fact is that once
that furnace ignited, it would immediately begin
producing light, that would immediately begin traveling outward in all
directions.
In other words, one would think that IF new stars were
indeed still forming in other galaxies, that they would be doing so almost
continuously, and that, at least some of them, somewhere in this great
universe of ours would start "popping up" somewhere. But as far
as we know, NOT ONE of them has done so; however, we have witnessed their
destruction on many occasions.
The Hidden Secret Behind Dark Matter:
For some time now astronomers have been telling us that the universe consists
of 95-99% cold dark matter (CDM), that cannot be seen or even detected except by its
gravitational force; however, they haven't told us why they believe this, other than to
say that the motions of stars and galaxies demands it.
What is wrong with this scenario? Are cosmologists and astronomers
hiding something from the public?
Let's take a look at some of the things that
have been said in this regard:.
"With 95% of the visible universe consisting of cold dark matter of
unknown composition, we are in the humiliating position of knowing only about
5% of what we see is made of." 36
And with regard to what this "dark matter" consists of we are "completely
in the dark." 36
And that:
"...calculations have shown that the detected matter in the
universe is only about 1% of the amount required to produce the gravitational
attraction needed to form all the galaxies and clumps of galaxies, even within
... 15 billion years. This problem was solved with the stroke of a
pen..." 37
And so, to account for this:
"In the early 1980's, cosmological theoreticians decided that the
universe was now made up of nearly 99% 'cold dark matter' (CDM) -- necessarily
'dark' because no one has ever seen it or detected it..." 37
In a nutshell, the theory of Dark Matter was invented (out of thin air) to
try and explain why Galaxies exist, and especially why they have
"structure" (i.e. spiral arms) and why they look as if they are quite
young -- when, of course, we just KNOW they must be (very, very)
OLD.
For more on the subject of Dark Matter and how the Galaxies themselves
provide evidence of a Young Universe see
What
Happened to all that Dark Matter?
38
Conclusion:
Scientists don't really know how old the universe is, nor how old the earth is,
and many of them are heavily biased due to their overly optimistic beliefs
regarding the mysterious power of mother nature to make ordinary, dead, matter
organize itself, and come to life. The Laws of science and probability
tell us that it would never happen in a trillion, trillion, years, ... and yet
here we are. Therefore, they want us to think that.... they know a LOT
MORE than us Creationist / believers in God about our origins and the age of
things, and that only THEY should be allowed to teach our children what THEY
believe -- no matter how unscientific and / or preposterous of a theory it turns
out to be.
Acknowledgements:
I am forever indebted to the Lord Jesus
Christ, and the working of the Holy Spirit for motivating me to write this paper, and those that
follow:
including the one on Upright Fossil
Trees. I am also especially indebted
to the following scientists for the books and articles they have written on
these subjects, and whose works I have used in this process: Dr. John
Morris,
Paul S. Taylor, Dennis R.
Petersen, Dr. Steve
Austin, Ian
Taylor, Dr. Henry
Morris, Sam Flamsteed, Russel Grigg, and to a lesser extent many others.
Copyright,
2006 Randy
S. Berg; No part of this paper may be reproduced, used, or sold for profit without
the express written consent of the author. Copies may be distributed freely for
educational purposes only.
