-
Asked by chocolatebuttonz to Alastair, Emma, Hywel, Keith on 25 Jun 2010 in Categories: About.
Question: When Do You Think The Next BIg Bang Will Be??
-
Alastair Sloan answered on 23 Jun 2010:
Hopefully there won’t be one!!!! But in around 5 billion or so years the sun will probably start to die and become a red giant. It won’t be a bang of sorts, but things will get exceedingly hot
-
-
Keith Brain answered on 23 Jun 2010:
Probably at about the time of the “Big Crunch”, which is when some astrophysicists argue that the universe will collapse in on itself. While the universe is still exanding, this expansion seems to be slowing down. It may be that this rate of expansion will stop, then the gravitational forces of the entire universe will cause all matter to be drawn towards a single point – a very big crunch indeed. Its not certain this will ever happen, but given that we’re still expanding, then it must be more than the age of the current universe away – probably much more than 20 billion years in the future.
What will happen “after” this … well, given that time won’t exist, as we know it, this is a difficult question to answer. However, it was “ever” to happen again, then I think it will be after a crunch.
Of course, outside our Universe there could a continuous process of big bangs that we’ll never know anything about, because we seem to be trapped in this Universe … sounds like a good introduction to a movie:
“In a Universe, far, far, away …”
(or is that a breach of copyright?) -
Hywel Vaughan answered on 25 Jun 2010:
An interesting debate going on here!
As Keith mentioned, one theory of what will happen next involves the ‘big crunch’, where the universe contracts. A further theory is that all of the particles as they contract will revert to their original location – making it possible that the big ban happens all over again. If this occurs, then it is fairly plausible that those particles will interact with each other in exactly the same way – making the whole of history happen again and again for all eternity…That then raises questions about fate… if this theory is correct (is it only one of hundreds of theories), then is this the first ‘cycle’ of history (so you get to make your own decisions, and you will make them again and again for all eternity) or has this happened before – so you would have made the choices you have made anyway, and they could never have happened any other way…
Something to think about 🙂
Comments
lupusmortii commented on :
I personally think that “big bang” is the wrong term. big expansion would make better sense as there was probably nothing to carry the sound of a “bang” but the next one could theoretically happen at any time but not necessarily in this universe. I personally believe that new universes are being created all the time but outside the universe we live in these universes al together are the much larger universe
lupusmortii commented on :
sorry that last word was met to be multiverse
Keith commented on :
I think that there would have been a very “bang”, because while all the energy and matter was very close together (soon after that event) there should have been enough matter around to carry sound waves. Plenty of energy around, so I’d say that the molecules would have been banging together to make sound waves. No ears to hear, though …
However, I agree that “big expansion” is probably a better term, and you’re probably right about multiverse theories. My “gut” (I refuse to be logical all the time) hates the concept of multiverses, but I’m probably wrong on this point!
07jonesm commented on :
My teacher wonders how we could ever know if there is a multiverse. Almost by definition it would be impossible for information to move from one universe to the next.
Another point, would all universes in the multiverse have the same basic physical constants eg different speeds of light or different plank constants. Some fasinating ideas here.