- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
Posted by: Stickman Army
Some people believe that after expanding for so many years, the galaxies inside the universe will start pulling together again. Then a "Big Crunch" will take place, the opposite of the Big Bang. For that theory to work, there has to be enough matter(Including so-called "Dark Matter") in the universe for it's gravity to cause it to collapse in on itself. If not, then the universe wil expand infinitely, and black holes will swallow almost everything until they evaporate, then there will only be a couple of stray particles every hundred lightyears. But in the event of a Big Crunch, black holes will merge, the backround temperature of space will get so hot that stars will boil away, and all the black holes in the universe will merge into a super black hole, until the universe winks away into nothingness. I prefer the latter, and quote Robert Frost's Fire and Ice
Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire
But if I had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To know that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice
Also, if there was a Big Crunch, it could bounce back, and result in another Big Bang that could create a brand new universe. And another thing that might confuse you: Before the Big Bang, there was no time or space. If this was true, how could time pass to get to the point of when the Big Bang occured? And about the edge of space thing, since the universe began, here is what I have to say. "Everything that has a beginning, has an end."
P.S. If you know me, you will notice that this is the one of the only times I have said something intelligent on the forums. And also, I have been really good at astronomy and science since I was 5. I drew a picture of all the planets in order labeled with the correct names, and roughly accurate appearances and scales.
[Edited on 10/12/2004 10:40:16 PM]