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The possible discrepancy between the ages of the Earth and the universe was probably one motivation for the development of the Steady State theory in 1948 as an alternative to the Big Bang; [5] in the (now obsolete) steady state theory, the universe is infinitely old and on average unchanging with time.
In 1862, the physicist William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin published calculations that fixed the age of Earth at between 20 million and 400 million years. [19] [20] He assumed that Earth had formed as a completely molten object, and determined the amount of time it would take for the near-surface temperature gradient to decrease to its present value.
One is based on a particle physics model of the early universe called Lambda-CDM, matched to measurements of the distant, and thus old features, like the cosmic microwave background. The other is based on the distance and relative velocity of a series or "ladder" of different kinds of stars, making it depend on local measurements late in the ...
This is an accepted version of this page This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 25 February 2025. There is 1 pending revision awaiting review. Scientific projections regarding the far future Several terms redirect here. For other uses, see List of numbers and List of years. Artist's concept of the Earth 5–7.5 billion years from now, when the Sun has become a red giant While the ...
Most astronomers believe the universe is 13.7 billion years old. A new study says that figure could be closer to 26.7 billion.
A graphical view of the Cosmic Calendar, featuring the months of the year, days of December, the final minute, and the final second. The Cosmic Calendar is a method to visualize the chronology of the universe, scaling its currently understood age of 13.787 billion years to a single year in order to help intuit it for pedagogical purposes in science education or popular science.
The first eon in Earth's history, the Hadean, begins with Earth's formation and is followed by the Archean eon at 3.8 Ga. [2]: 145 The oldest rocks found on Earth date to about 4.0 Ga, and the oldest detrital zircon crystals in rocks to about 4.4 Ga, [34] [35] [36] soon after the formation of Earth's crust and Earth itself.
Telescopic observations resulted in the discovery of moons and rings around planets, and new planets, comets and the asteroids; the recognition of planets as other worlds, of Earth as another planet, and stars as other suns; the identification of the Solar System as an entity in itself, and the determination of the distances to some nearby stars.