ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Photon epoch

The Photon Epoch was a time in the early universe when space was filled with a sea of photons and other particles (like protons and electrons). This was right after the Big Bang, which made lots and lots of really hot energy. The energy was so hot that it broke apart all of the particles, and this made everything move around really fast. But eventually the universe cooled down and the particles were able to stick together and form atoms and gases. The Photon Epoch was when all of the energy was moving around in the form of photons telling us about how the universe was born.