Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 Einstein’s theory of gravity was not compatible with the existing universe picture. It was difficult to apply his theory to describe the universe as a whole, because it was static and eternal, and consisted of a single galaxy, our Milky Way, surrounded by a vast, infinite, dark, and empty space. #2 The discovery that the universe is expanding was a huge leap forward in understanding the universe. It suggested that our universe had a beginning, which stirred emotions. It took several decades for the idea of a Big Bang to achieve independent empirical confirmation, but Pope Pius XII heralded it in 1951 as evidence for Genesis. #3 The Big Bang was first proposed by a priest in 1927. It was not until 1930 that Lemaître proposed that the universe began as an infinitesimal point, which he called the Primeval Atom. #4 Hubble’s work showed that the universe was much larger than previously thought, and that the Sun was not at its center but simply in a remote, uninteresting corner. He was a formidable force in astronomy.