Ups, didn't tought about that.anNIALLator said:
Light needs time to reach the limits of the universe.
is space infinate?
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Light needs time to reach the limits of the universe.
My mind was blown after reading the title, it instantly made me think this: Space could not be infinate 'cause surely there isn't space in the univers. BUT! Being infinate would mean that there would be an infinate amount of space. And if the univers is infinate wouldn't some aliens have tried communicating with us? There must be life out there somewhere if it is infinate.mikey300 said:
That's not quite right.Skeleon said:
From the point of view of standard numbers 2*infinity = infinity*2 = infinity.
In fact, infinite*infinity = infinity.
It's not that infinity is expanding into more infinity, but that every point inside the infinity is getting further away from each other.
But, that said, some infinities can be larger than others, for example 2^(countable infinity) = uncountable infinity > countable infinity.
The real answer? No one knows. Despite what someone else here said, we well could live inside something like a marble. Unlikely, but no ones for certain the greater structure as we are limited by the speed of light and the bounds of physics in terms of what we can access cosmologically. Likely that space itself as a structure of "quantum foam" is expanding into a limitless void, but even that explanation is uncertain and leaves holes.
EDIT: Most of the replies so far are guesses. Most people here do not seem to have a real clue what they're talking about. The guy who said "There's only one universe" needs to read multiverse theory and shut the hell up until he does, for example.
EDIT: Most of the replies so far are guesses. Most people here do not seem to have a real clue what they're talking about. The guy who said "There's only one universe" needs to read multiverse theory and shut the hell up until he does, for example.
Current theories are that the universe will in fact expand forever, thanks to dark energy.Glefistus said:
That was a hypothesis that was considered for a while, but recent deep space observations have suggested that the universe is in fact flat.05rutterb said:
yes.the universe is infintite there is never nothing by the laws of scientific balance (made them up) according to them for everything that exists there is an opposite. first there was nothing,then there was everything (every element on the periodic table)and from those elements there was created an infinite amount of natural compounds that form every thing
theres my view for ya
theres my view for ya
sorry, but space itself has an internal expanding pressure. Its why the gravity from galaxies hasn't collapsed matter into a central point. When all the energy from the big bang is converted into photons beyond the range of matter, then the universe will be a cold frozen wasteland of black holes and granular dust. Maybe some planets and dead stars.Glefistus said:
It's not space itself that's expanding, but the spread of objects. There is alot of empty space (as far as we know) after the edge of the known universe.Squid94 said:
I think, maybe, you and i are the only ones on the same page as the modern scientific consensus on the subject. High fives for watching the science channel!!!Maze1125 said:
According to John Barrow's book "The Infinite Book", there are several different 'types' of infinity, and each & every one just as inaccessable to the human mind as percieving four spatial dimensions.
Scientists have been struggling to glimpse to the known edges of our visible universe, and noticed that galaxies seem more 'condensed' the further they look. This is due to light from billions of years ago finally reaching us. Obviously, the galaxies themselves have moved on since emitting that light, but it gives scientists a rough idea of when the big bang occurred, and how 'big' the universe is at the moment.
However space is not just a big balloon that keeps blowing up to even bigger size. That is merely thinking in 3 spatial dimensions, while scientists have discovered that there are at least 10 spatial dimensions in the universe. Einstein has suggested that the universe is fabricated as spacetime, and as matter travels faster (& therefore gets heavier), it warps the space, & light around it. Due to these factors, discovering a physical 'edge' to the universe, like a wall of plasma, or a fence with a sign saying 'nothing beyond this point' is not very likely.
When early explorers started exploring the world, maps would usually have something like 'Here be monsters' in unexplored areas. In the heavens, humans imagined a celestial sphere, a black bubble with dots of light for the stars, that contained the sun, the moon and the earth, with everything else painted on its ceiling. Outside the bubble was heaven.
Obviously, we know that these theories are not true, but we're still doing the same with what is 'beyond' space. We're struggling with concepts such as 'borders', because we don't know & can't see any. We're struggling with the concept of absolute nothing, because even in a vacuum, there are still particles. We're stuck in a 3 dimensional world-view, and unable to count to infinity, because it is always one more number away from the one we can count.
It's great to contemplate the infinite universe, but I don't think the human mind can ever really 'see' it or imagine it. Still good fun trying, but don't try it after smoking anything! ;-)
Scientists have been struggling to glimpse to the known edges of our visible universe, and noticed that galaxies seem more 'condensed' the further they look. This is due to light from billions of years ago finally reaching us. Obviously, the galaxies themselves have moved on since emitting that light, but it gives scientists a rough idea of when the big bang occurred, and how 'big' the universe is at the moment.
However space is not just a big balloon that keeps blowing up to even bigger size. That is merely thinking in 3 spatial dimensions, while scientists have discovered that there are at least 10 spatial dimensions in the universe. Einstein has suggested that the universe is fabricated as spacetime, and as matter travels faster (& therefore gets heavier), it warps the space, & light around it. Due to these factors, discovering a physical 'edge' to the universe, like a wall of plasma, or a fence with a sign saying 'nothing beyond this point' is not very likely.
When early explorers started exploring the world, maps would usually have something like 'Here be monsters' in unexplored areas. In the heavens, humans imagined a celestial sphere, a black bubble with dots of light for the stars, that contained the sun, the moon and the earth, with everything else painted on its ceiling. Outside the bubble was heaven.
Obviously, we know that these theories are not true, but we're still doing the same with what is 'beyond' space. We're struggling with concepts such as 'borders', because we don't know & can't see any. We're struggling with the concept of absolute nothing, because even in a vacuum, there are still particles. We're stuck in a 3 dimensional world-view, and unable to count to infinity, because it is always one more number away from the one we can count.
It's great to contemplate the infinite universe, but I don't think the human mind can ever really 'see' it or imagine it. Still good fun trying, but don't try it after smoking anything! ;-)
If the big bang occured, then the possibility exists that space did not exist before the big bang. The possibility exists that what would be space was curved into a singularity, which ruptured to form the big bang. This theory then states that if you take the center point of the universe (yourself) and measure from there a number of lightyears equal to the age of the universe, then you will have spotted the end of the universe.
However, that only works from the central standpoint. If you actually travel to that location, the central standpoint then is where you go, and you are at the center of the universe, and the edge must be remeasured.
Space-time is curved and relative and so this is probably more likely than 'Everything just ends.' The thing is, that edge we can perceive -happened- at the big bang. So, let X be the age of the universe since the big bang. That means we're in the center of a sphere X light-years in diameter, where the -edge- is actually at the point in space-time where the entire universe is really in singularity. The closer something is to the edge, the closer it is to the actual -centerpoint- of space time... a paradox indeed!
Space and time are curved, so this is entirely possible.
However, that only works from the central standpoint. If you actually travel to that location, the central standpoint then is where you go, and you are at the center of the universe, and the edge must be remeasured.
Space-time is curved and relative and so this is probably more likely than 'Everything just ends.' The thing is, that edge we can perceive -happened- at the big bang. So, let X be the age of the universe since the big bang. That means we're in the center of a sphere X light-years in diameter, where the -edge- is actually at the point in space-time where the entire universe is really in singularity. The closer something is to the edge, the closer it is to the actual -centerpoint- of space time... a paradox indeed!
Space and time are curved, so this is entirely possible.