Islam & Science for Starters
Universe, Big Bang, Smoke, Expansion, Planets, Stars, Supernovae, Elements, and more. Part 1 of 7
By Shariq Ali Khan
In the name of Allah, the Most Forgiving, Most Merciful
In the Quran Allah asks:
“Do not the Unbelievers see that the Heavens and the Earth were joined together before I tore them apart…?”
Surah Al-Anbiyaa, 21 Ayah 30
The Quran is 1400 years old, and scientists have just found out now that it was exactly like that. They call this event the…
..Big Bang…
Shortly after the Big Bang, the universe was like smoke.
Allah commanded
“… the sky and it had been smoke: He said to it and the Earth: ‘Come together willingly or unwillingly!’ They said: ‘We come together in obedience.”
Surah Ha-Mim, 41 Ayah 10
So the sun, the moon, the planets, and also our Earth are all Muslims because they listen to Allah and obey him.
We should do the same.
The smoke is made of H (Hydrogen) and He (Helium).
Scientists know now that the universe used to be like smoke because far away galaxies are like smoke and incredibly old.
The planets and other bodies in the universe are made out of this smoke. The rest is empty space, which is also called a vacuum. Air is not a vacuum because it has gasses that we can breathe. Such a gas is O2, oxygen. We cannot breathe in outer space.
The first atoms were H, hydrogen, and He, helium. They are also the most widespread elements in the universe.
Sky, Earth, Sun, Moon, and Stars are Muslims…
The Sky and the Earth follow the command of Allah. They are Muslims. So is everyone and everything when they are born. But some people don’t want to be Muslims and don’t follow Allah’s command. We should tell them about Allah and his words. The Big Bang happened a long time ago. Today the universe has planets, like our Earth, moons like our moon, stars like our sun, solar systems, like our own, and galaxies, like our own galaxy which our solar system is part of.
There is much more in the universe…
If we look through telescopes, we can see distant stars and galaxies which are just as old as the universe. They are also enormously large.
This smoke-formation looks like the head of a horse and is called the horse-head nebula. There are all types of shapes in the universe!
This is the Hubble-Telescope…
…you can look back 14 billion years into the past with it!
Red light in faraway galaxies shows us that the universe is still growing.
Allah also says in the Quran
“I have built the heaven with might, and it is I who makes it grow forever.”
Surah Az-Zariyat, 51 Ayah 47
Red light has less energy than other light and proves to scientists that distant galaxies are still moving away, and the universe is expanding endlessly. We can see this through the Hubble-Telescope which has been in the orbit for over 20 years.
Big Bang and Expansion are new discoveries.
Scientists agree that all stars and planets were joined together in an extremely small and dense space and then exploded as shown in the picture on page 2 with the Big Bang.
Scientists have only discovered the growth of the universe and the Big Bang now. Allah said this in the Quran 1400 years ago already.
This makes our belief in Allah stronger. So, we should read the Quran and tell others that… there is no God other than Allah.
Supernovae are large distant stars, and they are extremely hot!
The Supernovae are important for life.
Inside the Supernovae H (Hydrogen) and He (Helium) is turned into Fe, which is the chemical sign for iron. This process is called nuclear fusion. After this, the Supernovae send out bodies called meteorites. These meteorites fall on planets like our Earth and make it rich in iron and other elements which are important for life.
This is how our Earth which was once smoke and then liquid has become hard as it is now…
This is how a Supernova looks when it becomes old. It explodes and sends out meteorites.
That’s why Allah says:
“…I sent down Iron with which you can make (material for) mighty war as well as many good things for mankind…”
Surah Al-Hadid, 57 Ayah 29
…and He says…
“Soon I will show them my Signs in the (furthest) regions and their souls until it becomes clear to them that this is the truth…”
Surah Ha-Mim, 41 Ayah 53
The development of stars and planets
Supernova to Star
Planetary Nebula
Nebula
Pulsar
Both, planets, and stars, like our sun, come from smoke or nebula.
Comets move through the universe. They carry iron, copper, and other heavy elements and minerals which were created inside the Supernovae.
Their colour tells you what they are made of. Red is iron, blue is copper, yellow is gas.
Summary:
In the Quran, Allah has told us exactly how the universe is built. It is his creation.
There are details about the Big Bang. Shortly after the Big Bang, there was smoke, which was built up of Hydrogen and Helium. The bodies in the universe came together out of the same material as this smoke. Therefore, the planets are also made out of this smoke. We live on such a planet. It is called the Earth. In the Quran Allah also explains that he makes the universe grow. Allah also describes to us in the Quran that he sent down elements like iron. This happened inside giant stars which are extremely far away. Scientists call these Supernovae which explode when they are incredibly old. Then comets and meteors burst out of it.
Scientists have discovered all these things in the 20th century and the Hubble-Telescope has helped scientists in proving much of this. The Hubble-Telescope is only around 10 years old. The Quran was revealed to the Prophet Mohammed (peace be on him) 1400 years ago at a time when telescopes, spaceships, and satellites did not exist. It covers many aspects of natural phenomena in modern science. The Quran is a revelation of Allah, who is the Creator of all things and beings. These are just a few of Allah’s signs. There are many more.
There is no God other than Allah,
and Mohammed is the Messenger of Allah.