The Big Bang is hypothesized to be the beginning of the universe. But how will the universe end?
The Crunch
The Big Crunch was one of the first theories about the end of the universe and predicts a universal collapse. In essence, it was the reverse of the Big Bang. As the universe continues expansion outwards, the combined gravitational attraction of everything will gradually stop the growth. Once the universe stops expanding, all the matter in the universe will eventually collide back into each other. The universe has enough mass to be able to consolidate into a singular point that is infinitely dense. It’s speculated that another Big Bang could occur from this singular point of mass and rebirth a new universe, creating a cycle known as the Big Bounce. However, the theory was proven to be inaccurate, as the discovery of dark energy meant that it was unlikely that the expansion of the universe would slow down.
The Freeze
The Big Freeze, also known as Heat Death, would occur if the universe kept growing to infinite time. As this happens, stars and galaxies are pulled far away from each other to the point where new stars cannot form since the materials for star formation would be too far away. The Big Freeze idea builds upon thermodynamics and a prediction that the universe will reach its maximum value of entropy. When this happens, all the heat is evenly spread out across the universe and the temperature will reach absolute zero. At absolute zero, all movement stops as there is no longer energy. The universe would enter a dark age where black holes destroy any remaining material. Eventually, even the black holes will dissipate, leaving the universe with nothing.
The Rip
The Big Rip would happen if the universe’s expansion accelerated to a very high speed. As the universe stretches to its limits, the gravitational forces won’t be able to keep galaxies, planets, or even atomic mass together. Everything will be ripped apart and only subatomic particles or radiation will fill the universe. With the universe forever expanding at an increased rate, whatever is left of this universe will eventually become a singular point, or singularity, in the ever-growing universe.
The Slurp
What if the universe ended right now? Theoretically, it could but it is a very unlikely scenario. The Big Slurp, or vacuum decay, is built on the idea of the Higgs boson and field (which gives particles mass). The Higgs field, like an electric field, can vary in potential depending on energy. As of now, the Higgs field that fills the entire universe is in a steady energy state, but if that were to change into another energy state, it would create a vacuum bubble that would consume the universe at the speed of light. The chances of this happening are very, very, very, very slim so I'd say we're reasonably safe. At least for now.
Thanks for reading!
Written by Kaylee Barrera
Sources
Daley, Jason. “If a Cosmic Bubble Destroys the Universe, Scientists Now Know When It’ll Happen.” Smithsonian Magazine, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/we-now-know-when-cosmic-death-bubble-may-destroy-universe-180968687/. Accessed 14 Sept. 2021.
Jun. 30, David Salisbury, et al. “New Model of Cosmic Stickiness Favors ‘Big Rip’ Demise of Universe.” News, 30 June 2015, https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2015/06/30/new-model-of-cosmic-stickiness-favors-“big-rip”-demise-of-universe/.
Skibba, Ramin. “Crunch, Rip, Freeze or Decay — How Will the Universe End?” Nature, vol. 584, no. 7820, Aug. 2020, pp. 187–187. www.nature.com, https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-02338-w.
Sunday, Eric Betz |. Published:, et al. “The Beginning to the End of the Universe: The Big Crunch vs. The Big.” Astronomy.Com, https://astronomy.com/news/magazine/2021/01/the-beginning-to-the-end-of-the-universe-the-big-crunch-vs-the-big-freeze. Accessed 14 Sept. 2021.
“Vacuum Decay: The Ultimate Catastrophe.” Cosmos Magazine, 13 Sept. 2015, https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/physics/vacuum-decay-the-ultimate-catastrophe/.
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