The document discusses our evolving understanding of the universe from theories of both large and small scales over centuries. It describes early geocentric and heliocentric models of the solar system from 2000 and 500 years ago. It then outlines major developments in the last 100-400 years including Einstein's theory of relativity, Hubble's discovery of galaxy expansion, and advances in observational astronomy through powerful telescopes. On small scales, it discusses discoveries like the atomic model from 110-100 years ago and developments in particle physics and nuclear fusion models over the last 50-100 years. In the end, it notes many areas still not fully understood including dark matter, dark energy, reconciling quantum theory with general relativity, and possibilities like string theory and

1. THE UNIVERSE
How we came to understand it
from the theories of the large
and the theories of the small
by
Mike Petersen

2. The Universe Large
• The Universe is 13.7 BYO.
• It is huge beyond imagination.
• It is expanding.
• How did we figure this out?

3. The Universe Large
• Ptolemy and the Geocentric Theory
• 2000 years ago

4. The Universe Large
• Copernicus and the Heliocentric Theory
• 500 years ago

5. The Universe Large
• Galileo and the Telescope
• 400 years ago

6. The Universe Large
• Newton and the Law of Gravity
• 350 years ago

7. The Universe Large
• Einstein and the Theory of Relativity
• 100 years ago

8. The Universe Large
• Special and General Theories of Relativity
• Einstein meshed space, time, energy, matter

9. The Universe Large
• Gravity is warped space-time
• Orbits are space-time straight lines

10. The Universe Large
• Light bends in warped space-time
• Proof of General Theory of Relativity - 1922

11. The Universe Large
• Hubble – Galaxies, Redshift, Expansion
• 90 years ago

12. The Universe Large
• VLT Array – Atacama Desert, Chile
• 1995-2005 – Interferometry (8.2M x 4)

13. The Universe Large
• Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawaii
• 1993 – (10M x 2)

14. The Universe Large
• Hubble Space Telescope
• 1990-2020 – 2.4M

15. The Universe Large
• James Webb Space Telescope
• 2018 – 6.5M Long Wavelength Light to Infrared

16. The Universe Large
• Big Bang Theory – Plagued by problems
• 1927 – Georges Lemaître – 1980 Alan Guth

17. The Universe Small
• The Universe is 13.7 BYO.
• It is small beyond imagination.
• It is expanding.
• How did we figure this out?
• 1.61619926 × 10-35 M

18. The Universe Small
• Rutherford and the Atom
• 110 years ago

19. The Universe Small
• Bohr and discrete Electron Orbits in the Atom
• 100 years ago

20. The Universe Small
• The Standard Model of Particle Physics
• Last 100 years

21. The Universe Small
• How the sun works – (Nuclear Fusion)
• 80 years ago

22. The Universe Small
• How the sun works – (Nuclear Fusion)
• 50 years ago

23. The Universe Small
• How the sun works – (Nuclear Fusion)
• 40-50 years ago

24. The Universe Large and Small
• We don’t understand a LOT
• Dark Matter – Dark Energy
• The ‘Lithium Problem’
• Quantum Theory and General Relativity
• String Theory?
• Parallel Universes