The edge of the observable universe is 46 billion light-years away despite the universe only being 13.8 billion years old
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The universe is 13.8 billion years old, so you might expect the farthest light we could see to be 13.8 billion light-years away (the distance light could travel since the Big Bang). But the universe has been expanding the whole time — the point from which the oldest light originated has since moved to about 46 billion light-years away from us. Space itself expanded faster than the speed of light during the earliest moments, and continues to expand now.
Space can expand faster than light — it is not matter moving through space but space itself stretching. The observable universe is three times wider than the age of the universe would suggest because the container itself grew.
The Science Behind It
The universe is 13.8 billion years old, so you might expect the farthest light we could see to be 13.8 billion light-years away (the distance light could travel since the Big Bang). But the universe has been expanding the whole time — the point from which the oldest light originated has since moved to about 46 billion light-years away from us. Space itself expanded faster than the speed of light during the earliest moments, and continues to expand now.
Why Your Brain Finds This Hard to Believe
OddlyHuman Editorial
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Read our Editorial Guidelines →“The observable universe is 46 billion light-years wide despite only being 13.8 billion years old. Space itself expanded faster than light.”