Echoes Unravel the Universe's Puzzle

An illustrated science story from Wonder Science — free to read, with narration.

Echoes Unravel the Universe's Puzzle — an illustrated science story. 10 illustrated pages, free to read on Wonder Science.

Echoes Unravel the Universe's Puzzle — book cover — Wonder Science
Echoes Unravel the Universe's Puzzle — an illustrated science story. 10 illustrated pages, free to read on Wonder Science.

Page 1

Fuzzy static crackled from the car radio as Mei and her father drove up the winding road to Twin Peaks. "Dad, what is that awful noise?" Mei asked, wrinkling…
Fuzzy static crackled from the car radio as Mei and her father drove up the winding road to Twin Peaks. "Dad, what is that awful noise?" Mei asked, wrinkling her nose as she tried to find a clear station. Her father chuckled, looking out at the city lights beginning to sparkle below them. "It sounds like the radio is just caught between channels," he said, "but what if some of that static wasn't from here at all?"

Fuzzy static crackled from the car radio as Mei and her father drove up the winding road to Twin Peaks. "Dad, what is that awful noise?" Mei asked, wrinkling her nose as she tried to find a clear station. Her father chuckled, looking out at the city lights beginning to sparkle below them. "It sounds like the radio is just caught between channels," he said, "but what if some of that static wasn't from here at all?"

Page 2

"Not from here? You mean like, from space?" Mei asked, her eyes widening with curiosity. "Exactly," her father replied, pulling the car over at the viewpoint.
"Not from here? You mean like, from space?" Mei asked, her eyes widening with curiosity. "Exactly," her father replied, pulling the car over at the viewpoint. "A tiny piece of that static, about one percent of it, is actually an echo from the very beginning of the universe—it's called the Cosmic Microwave Background." Mei stared at the radio in disbelief. "So that annoying hiss is a baby picture of the universe?"

"Not from here? You mean like, from space?" Mei asked, her eyes widening with curiosity. "Exactly," her father replied, pulling the car over at the viewpoint. "A tiny piece of that static, about one percent of it, is actually an echo from the very beginning of the universe—it's called the Cosmic Microwave Background." Mei stared at the radio in disbelief. "So that annoying hiss is a baby picture of the universe?"

Page 3

The world swirled, and suddenly Mei was standing invisibly on a grassy hill in New Jersey, back in the year 1964. A colossal horn-shaped antenna, bigger than a…
The world swirled, and suddenly Mei was standing invisibly on a grassy hill in New Jersey, back in the year 1964. A colossal horn-shaped antenna, bigger than a house, pointed towards the sky. Two men in shirtsleeves and slacks tinkered with wires at its base, looking frustrated. The air was filled with the gentle hum of electronics and the chirping of crickets.

The world swirled, and suddenly Mei was standing invisibly on a grassy hill in New Jersey, back in the year 1964. A colossal horn-shaped antenna, bigger than a house, pointed towards the sky. Two men in shirtsleeves and slacks tinkered with wires at its base, looking frustrated. The air was filled with the gentle hum of electronics and the chirping of crickets.

Page 4

"Those scientists were Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson," a voice narrated, as the two men scratched their heads. "They weren't looking for the beginning of time…
"Those scientists were Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson," a voice narrated, as the two men scratched their heads. "They weren't looking for the beginning of time; they were just trying to use this new radio telescope for astronomy." But no matter where they aimed the giant horn, they heard a persistent, faint hiss. "They were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1978 for accidentally discovering the oldest light in the universe."

"Those scientists were Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson," a voice narrated, as the two men scratched their heads. "They weren't looking for the beginning of time; they were just trying to use this new radio telescope for astronomy." But no matter where they aimed the giant horn, they heard a persistent, faint hiss. "They were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1978 for accidentally discovering the oldest light in the universe."

Page 5

"This noise is everywhere!" one of the men exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. They checked every wire, re-calibrated every dial, and even climbed into…
"This noise is everywhere!" one of the men exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. They checked every wire, re-calibrated every dial, and even climbed into the giant horn to clean it, thinking pigeons might be the cause. Mei watched them, a smile on her face. "'Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known,'" she whispered, remembering what the astronomer Carl Sagan once said. "They just found it by accident!"

"This noise is everywhere!" one of the men exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. They checked every wire, re-calibrated every dial, and even climbed into the giant horn to clean it, thinking pigeons might be the cause. Mei watched them, a smile on her face. "'Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known,'" she whispered, remembering what the astronomer Carl Sagan once said. "They just found it by accident!"

Page 6

After talking with other scientists, they had a stunning realization. The hiss wasn't a flaw in their machine, and it wasn't from Earth or our galaxy.
After talking with other scientists, they had a stunning realization. The hiss wasn't a flaw in their machine, and it wasn't from Earth or our galaxy. "It's coming from every single direction in space, at the same time," Penzias realized, his eyes wide. It was the leftover heat from the Big Bang, a faint glow that had been traveling through space for 13.8 billion years.

After talking with other scientists, they had a stunning realization. The hiss wasn't a flaw in their machine, and it wasn't from Earth or our galaxy. "It's coming from every single direction in space, at the same time," Penzias realized, his eyes wide. It was the leftover heat from the Big Bang, a faint glow that had been traveling through space for 13.8 billion years.

Page 7

This discovery changed everything, providing the strongest evidence for the Big Bang theory. Satellites like COBE, WMAP, and Planck were later launched to map…
This discovery changed everything, providing the strongest evidence for the Big Bang theory. Satellites like COBE, WMAP, and Planck were later launched to map this ancient light in incredible detail. "This echo lets us measure the age of the universe!" Mei thought, amazed. "And the light from the Sun only takes eight minutes and twenty seconds to get to us, but this light has been traveling since the beginning of time."

This discovery changed everything, providing the strongest evidence for the Big Bang theory. Satellites like COBE, WMAP, and Planck were later launched to map this ancient light in incredible detail. "This echo lets us measure the age of the universe!" Mei thought, amazed. "And the light from the Sun only takes eight minutes and twenty seconds to get to us, but this light has been traveling since the beginning of time."

Page 8

Mei and her father were just walking into their house in Noe Valley when she finally put it all together. "Dad, it wasn't just noise!" she exclaimed, grabbing…
Mei and her father were just walking into their house in Noe Valley when she finally put it all together. "Dad, it wasn't just noise!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "That static was a real message from billions of years ago!" Her father smiled, hanging his keys by the door. "Exactly. An echo that tells us where we came from."

Mei and her father were just walking into their house in Noe Valley when she finally put it all together. "Dad, it wasn't just noise!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "That static was a real message from billions of years ago!" Her father smiled, hanging his keys by the door. "Exactly. An echo that tells us where we came from."

Page 9

Mei's mother came into the living room, holding two mugs of hot chocolate. "What message are we talking about?" she asked.
Mei's mother came into the living room, holding two mugs of hot chocolate. "What message are we talking about?" she asked. "Mom, the radio static is an echo of the Big Bang!" Mei explained. Her father added, "It makes you think about all the other invisible things flying around us, like Wi-Fi signals and GPS instructions from satellites."

Mei's mother came into the living room, holding two mugs of hot chocolate. "What message are we talking about?" she asked. "Mom, the radio static is an echo of the Big Bang!" Mei explained. Her father added, "It makes you think about all the other invisible things flying around us, like Wi-Fi signals and GPS instructions from satellites."

Page 10

"So, the whole universe is filled with a faint, ancient hum," Mei summarized, feeling a shiver of excitement. She took a sip of her hot chocolate, feeling…
"So, the whole universe is filled with a faint, ancient hum," Mei summarized, feeling a shiver of excitement. She took a sip of her hot chocolate, feeling connected to everything. Her mother smiled thoughtfully and asked, "If that's the echo of the beginning... then what was it like before the echo? What made the bang in the first place?"

"So, the whole universe is filled with a faint, ancient hum," Mei summarized, feeling a shiver of excitement. She took a sip of her hot chocolate, feeling connected to everything. Her mother smiled thoughtfully and asked, "If that's the echo of the beginning... then what was it like before the echo? What made the bang in the first place?"

About this story

  • Audience: kids (ages 6–12)

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