The name of Stephen Hawking resonates in the collective consciousness as one of the most important men of science in recent years. He dedicated his life to answering countless questions about the Universe., was an eminence in the field of physics, astrophysics and cosmology. Despite the fact that he left this plane in 2018, his contributions to science will continue to be valid in science.
saurabh singh
Such a contribution to humanity requires a tribute and for this we present the 9 most important contributions of Stephen Hawking to science.
Stephen Hawking’s contributions to science
black holes
Hawking took the works of Albert Einstein as a basis for the application of new complex theories of quantum physics to explain the nature of black holes. Until then, these space objects were poorly understood and believed to defy all the laws of physics. However, the great Stephen came to reconsider and glimpse that from quantum physics they could be understood.
Hawking radiation
Until then it was believed that nothing could escape from black holes, but Hawking showed that they can not only lose matter, but are even capable of emitting energy in the form of radiation. An extremely important discovery that united the equations described for gravity, with thermodynamics. In his honor, this type of energy was named Hawking Radiation.
Confirmation of the Big Bang
The Big Bang theory emerged in the 1940s and despite having been among scientists for so long, not all of them accepted it as true. But Stephen Hawking’s work on black holes helped prove that an explosion the size of the Big Bang did indeed happen.
The Theory of Everything
Like most scientists dedicated to the study of the Universe, Hawking wondered what its origin is. But this questioning, as expected, was not linear at all. It implies rethinking many other questions such as whether the Universe has an end and where it is moving to. All of them are explained in The Theory of Everything, where the scientist states that the Universe evolves according to a series of well-defined laws.
Brief History of Time
His scientific theories are not the only thing that characterizes him, Stephen was also a great popularizer of science. So capable of explaining complex physics issues to the general public in his book A Brief History of Time, which has sold more than 10 million copies and has been translated into 35 languages.
quantum gravity
His studies represent a first step towards a theory of quantum gravity. The mathematical expressions with which gravity and quantum physics are explained are not compatible with each other. But Hawking defied all theoretical limits and laid the foundations for the unification of general relativity, the theory of gravitation and spacetime, and quantum mechanics that is currently under development.
Formation of the first galaxies
He proposed that quantum mechanical effects in the universe just after the Big Bang produced the oscillations in gravity that allowed the first stars and galaxies to form. Subsequently, with the observation of the microwave background radiation from the Universe, the physicist’s theory was verified.
Hartle-Hawking state theory
Along with the mathematician Roger Penrose, Hawking concluded that black holes were like the Big Band, but in reverse. Thus he demonstrated that these allowed encapsulating the entire history of the universe in a single mathematical expression known as the Hartle-Hawking state or Wave Function of the Universe.
The protection of the chronology
Stephen declared that in the Universe there must be a law that prevents the movement of matter through the fourth dimension. Which means that for Hawking time travel is not possible.
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