cosmic web
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How did the cosmic web form?
The density of ordinary matter decreased rapidly in the expanding universe before it cooled enough for large scale structures to form. Dark matter formed a cosmic web that concentrated ordinary matter enough for galaxies, stars, planets, and life to evolve.
the cosmic web evolves in a nearly isotropic homogeneous early universe
the universe expands and cools rapidly after the Big Bang
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matter and radiant energy slow the expansion of the universe
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dark matter preserves primordial quantum density fluctuations
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dark matter halos attract ordinary baryonic matter
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matter and energy evolve in an expanding universe
photons and neutrinos dominate matter for 50,000 years
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radiant energy decreases as the universe expands
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matter is conserved in an expanding universe, but not its density
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dark energy accelerates the expansion of the universe
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the cosmic web contains nodes, filaments, and voids
nodes pack a lot of matter in a relatively small volume
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voids have very little matter in an enormous volume
filaments have a lot of matter in a large volume
nearly half of the baryonic matter is in the voids
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the temperature and density of matter varies in time and space
the temperature of interstellar gases influence star formation
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nucleosynthesis produces the elements in the Periodic Table
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galaxies contain a small fraction of the matter in the universe
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stars contain half of the baryonic matter in the galaxy
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