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Separate Physics · Paper 2 · Foundation + Higher · P8

The Big Bang and developing explanations

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Reasoning back from expansion

If the universe is expanding now, tracing that expansion backwards suggests that matter and energy were once concentrated into a much smaller region. The Big Bang model describes an early universe that was extremely hot and dense. It concerns the expansion of space itself, not an ordinary explosion from one location into an already empty room. Red-shift observations provide evidence supporting this model.

Two snapshots show the positions of galaxies A, B and C for a comparison of separations.

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Foundation + Higher · P8. P8 is a complete Physics-only topic.

AQA GCSE Physics 8463 · 4.8.2. Original notes, questions and diagrams. Models are simplified; teaching data are illustrative.