"Exploring the Enigmatic Cosmic Dark Ages: A Comprehensive Guide"
The cosmic dark ages is a period in the early universe, starting about 380,000 years after the Big Bang, characterized by a lack of light due to the absorption by neutral hydrogen gas. This era persisted until stars and galaxies formed, emitting ultraviolet light that reionized the hydrogen, making the universe transparent to light. The end of the cosmic dark ages is estimated to have occurred between 680 million and 1.1 billion years after the Big Bang. Recent observations, particularly from the James Webb Space Telescope, have provided new insights into this period, with the potential for future moon-based radio observatories to offer more detailed glimpses into this formative era of the universe.