[aesop_image img=”https://hilite.org/core/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/bicep2.jpg” caption=”BICEPKECK.ORG / SOURCE” align=”left” captionposition=”left” lightbox=”off”]Most people have probably seen recent headlines touting that proof of the big bang has arrived in the form of gravitational waves, “ripples” in spacetime caused by the conception of our universe. However, there have also been opinion pieces saying that this discovery offers strong evidence for the existence of the Judeo-Christian God. I’ve decided it may be a good idea to set a few things straight.

First off, scientists detected the waves by looking at something called the cosmic microwave background, or CMB (leftover radiation from the beginnings of the universe), using the BICEP2 telescope based at the South Pole. Scientists observed that the CMB, in a certain area, had become polarized. What they found, specifically, were B modes – wavelike patterns that suggest gravitational waves are rippling through the fabric of spacetime.

Many news organizations claimed that this was proof of the big bang. While it does support the possibility of a big bang creating our universe, it really only narrowed the scope of possible hypotheses to explain this phenomenon. For instance, there are a number of theories surrounding the big bang involving theoretical particles known as axions. Most of these hypotheses are now virtually debunked by the new data – most axion hypotheses couldn’t account for the high energy level new findings suggest was present during the big bang. The idea of a “chaotic inflation” – the universe inflating infinitely, and stopping only in small areas, only to continue its exponential growth elsewhere – has received more favor based on the new findings. Chaotic inflation not only allows for higher energy, but also leaves open the possibility of a multiverse, where other universes with their own separate laws of physics exist beyond our own.

About 90% of inflationary hypotheses have been utterly discredited by the detection of gravitational waves. This elimination of plausible hypotheses is very healthy for both experimental and theoretical physics, and takes us leaps and bounds closer to understanding the elusive story of our own origins.

Expect to hear more about the latest discoveries and innovations in the coming weeks. For science!