how big?
2006-08-29 12:07:39 · 13 answers · asked by I AM GOD! 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Really big.
2006-08-29 12:11:37 · answer #1 · answered by gazongas 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It depends on the theory, and the parameters you use to come up with it.
The cosmic light horizon is 15.8 billion light years, which corresponds to the Big Bang. However, since the universe is expanding, it's estimated that the distance from one end to the other is some 78 billion light years.
2006-08-29 12:16:02 · answer #2 · answered by numbnuts 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There's debate as to whether or not the universe is finate or infinate in terms of spatial extents.
The observable portion of the universe is quite finate however. The light horizon of the universe is about 15.8 billion light-years away. The present distance to the edge of the physical univerise however is approximately 78 billion light-years.
There are 7x10^22 stars in the universe, arranged in 100 billion galaxies. In 2006, the Hubble Space Telescope disovered the galaxy Abell 1835 IR1916, which is 13 billion light years away, making it one of the most distant galaxies found thus far.
Of course, this understanding of the size of the universe may change as we come to understand more about the nature of dark matter and dark energy.
2006-08-29 14:44:27 · answer #3 · answered by Jonathen 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. There is an estimated size for the *visible* universe, but it's impossible to know for certain what is beyond the limit of visibility. The estimated visible universe would be a sphere with a radius of 13.7 billion light-years
2006-08-29 12:12:09 · answer #4 · answered by DakkonA 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Approximately 15 Billion Light years.
2006-08-29 12:12:07 · answer #5 · answered by JAMES 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Steve is correct! The Universe is constantly in a state of "expansion" and therefore there is no known estimate of how large it is, no could there ever be!
2006-08-29 13:22:54 · answer #6 · answered by louis r 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hi. Best estimate is about 27 or so billion light years diameter.
2006-08-29 12:12:50 · answer #7 · answered by Cirric 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Nope, it's impossible to figure out becuase the universe is constantly expanding at an unknown rate so even if we did estimate it we'd have to change it constantly.
2006-08-29 12:13:55 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly hugely mindbogglingly big it is. I mean you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist, but that's just peanuts compared to space ...
"The simple truth is that interstellar distances will not fit into the human imagination."
2006-08-29 12:29:11 · answer #9 · answered by stevewbcanada 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
scientists have determined that the universe is infinite.
2006-08-29 12:12:59 · answer #10 · answered by haha183 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋