New Model Predicts the Universe Could Begin Dying in Just 10 Billion Years: What This Means for Us

A new paper suggests that the universe might not last as long as previously thought. It’s estimated that in about 10 billion years, the cosmos could start its decline.

However, this is just one theory. The truth is, we haven’t figured out when the universe will really end. Two main ideas are the “Big Freeze” and the “Big Crunch.” The Big Freeze suggests the universe keeps expanding until stars run out of energy and cool down to absolute zero. In contrast, the Big Crunch proposes that the expansion will eventually reverse, causing the universe to collapse back in on itself, similar to a reverse Big Bang.

Currently, scientists are debating which scenario is more likely. A situation called the “cosmological crisis” complicates matters because there are uncertainties about how fast the universe is expanding.

One way to resolve this crisis involves the cosmological constant, a number that helps us calculate cosmic expansion. But first, we need to understand dark energy, the mysterious force pushing the universe apart. A recent paper on arXiv, which hasn’t been peer-reviewed yet, suggests dark energy might be made up of axions, hypothetical particles that rarely interact with matter.

If axions exist, they might change our understanding of the universe’s fate. The researchers propose that if the cosmological constant is negative, the Big Crunch could occur much earlier than expected. Their model estimates the universe’s lifespan at around 33 billion years total, meaning we’ve already completed a significant portion of its life—about one-third, given that the universe is thought to be about 13.8 billion years old.

If this new model is correct, we could see the universe halt its expansion in roughly 10 billion years and start contracting at an accelerated rate. Other theories suggest a timeline for the Big Crunch might stretch into hundreds of billions of years, indicating how uncertain the future is.

This isn’t the first time scientists have considered a rapid end for the universe. In 2022, another study suggested the universe might stop expanding in just a hundred million years. If the Big Freeze scenario, favored by Albert Einstein, holds true, the end would come much later.

Interestingly, some experts have put forward the idea that the universe could be part of a never-ending cycle of Big Bangs and expansions. This theory suggests a kind of cosmic immortality. Others even theorize that our universe might be a simulation or hologram, sparking questions about its reality.

Ultimately, while ideas about the fate of the universe continue to evolve, the quest for answers will take a long time. As research progresses, our understanding of the cosmos and its mysteries will likely deepen.

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