Universe

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For other uses, see Universe (disambiguation).

Universe
Ordinary (baryonic) matter (4.9%)
Dark matter (26.8%)
Dark energy (68.3%)[8]
ShapeFlat with 4‰ error margin[9]

The universe is all of

galaxies. Space and time, according to the prevailing cosmological theory of the Big Bang, emerged together 13.787±0.020 billion years ago,[11] and the universe has been expanding ever since. Today the universe has expanded into an age and size that is physically only in parts observable as the observable universe, which is approximately 93 billion light-years in diameter at the present day, while the spatial size, if any, of the entire universe is unknown.[3]

Some of the earliest cosmological models of the universe were developed by ancient Greek and Indian philosophers and were geocentric, placing Earth at the center.[12][13] Over the centuries, more precise astronomical observations led Nicolaus Copernicus to develop the heliocentric model with the Sun at the center of the Solar System. In developing the law of universal gravitation, Isaac Newton built upon Copernicus's work as well as Johannes Kepler's laws of planetary motion and observations by Tycho Brahe.

Further observational improvements led to the realization that the Sun is one of a few hundred billion stars in the

At the largest scale, galaxies are distributed uniformly and the same in all directions, meaning that the universe has neither an edge nor a center. At smaller scales, galaxies are distributed in clusters and superclusters which form immense filaments and voids in space, creating a vast foam-like structure.[14] Discoveries in the early 20th century have suggested that the universe had a beginning and has been expanding since then.[15]

According to the Big Bang theory, the energy and matter initially present have become less dense as the universe expanded. After an initial accelerated expansion called the inflationary epoch at around 10−32 seconds, and the separation of the four known fundamental forces, the universe gradually cooled and continued to expand, allowing the first subatomic particles and simple atoms to form. Giant clouds of hydrogen and helium were gradually drawn to the places where matter was most dense, forming the first galaxies, stars, and everything else seen today.

From studying the effects of

baryonic') matter is therefore only 4.84%±0.1% of the physical universe.[17] Stars, planets, and visible gas clouds only form about 6% of the ordinary matter.[18]

There are many competing hypotheses about the ultimate fate of the universe and about what, if anything, preceded the Big Bang, while other physicists and philosophers refuse to speculate, doubting that information about prior states will ever be accessible. Some physicists have suggested various multiverse hypotheses, in which the universe might be one among many.[3][19][20]

Part of a series on
Physical cosmology
Early universe
Backgrounds
Expansion · Future
Components · Structure
Components
Structure
Experiments
Scientists
Subject history

Definition

Hubble Space Telescope – Ultra-Deep Field galaxies to Legacy field zoom out
(video 00:50; May 2, 2019)

The physical universe is defined as all of

physical laws that influence energy and matter, such as conservation laws, classical mechanics, and relativity.[24]

The universe is often defined as "the totality of existence", or everything that exists, everything that has existed, and everything that will exist.[24] In fact, some philosophers and scientists support the inclusion of ideas and abstract concepts—such as mathematics and logic—in the definition of the universe.[26][27][28] The word universe may also refer to concepts such as the cosmos, the world, and nature.[29][30]

Etymology

The word universe derives from the Old French word univers, which in turn derives from the Latin word universus, meaning 'combined into one'.[31] The Latin word 'universum' was used by Cicero and later Latin authors in many of the same senses as the modern English word is used.[32]

Synonyms

A term for universe among the ancient Greek philosophers from

world, the cosmos'.[35] Synonyms are also found in Latin authors (totum, mundus, natura)[36] and survive in modern languages, e.g., the German words Das All, Weltall, and Natur for universe. The same synonyms are found in English, such as everything (as in the theory of everything), the cosmos (as in cosmology), the world (as in the many-worlds interpretation), and nature (as in natural laws or natural philosophy).[37]

Chronology and the Big Bang

Main articles: Big Bang and Chronology of the universe

The prevailing model for the evolution of the universe is the Big Bang theory.[38][39] The Big Bang model states that the earliest state of the universe was an extremely hot and dense one, and that the universe subsequently expanded and cooled. The model is based on general relativity and on simplifying assumptions such as the homogeneity and isotropy of space. A version of the model with a cosmological constant (Lambda) and cold dark matter, known as the Lambda-CDM model, is the simplest model that provides a reasonably good account of various observations about the universe. The Big Bang model accounts for observations such as the correlation of distance and redshift of galaxies, the ratio of the number of hydrogen to helium atoms, and the microwave radiation background.

In this schematic diagram, time passes from left to right, with the universe represented by a disk-shaped "slice" at any given time. Time and size are not to scale. To make the early stages visible, the time to the afterglow stage (really the first 0.003%) is stretched and the subsequent expansion (really by 1,100 times to the present) is largely suppressed.

The initial hot, dense state is called the

10−32 seconds.[40] This initial period of inflation would explain why space appears to be very flat, and is uniform on scales much larger
than light could otherwise travel since the start of the universe.

Within the first fraction of a second of the universe's existence, the four fundamental forces had separated. As the universe continued to cool from its inconceivably hot state, various types of

atomic nuclei through nuclear fusion.[41][42]

This process, known as Big Bang nucleosynthesis, lasted for about 17 minutes and ended about 20 minutes after the Big Bang, so only the fastest and simplest reactions occurred. About 25% of the protons and all the neutrons in the universe, by mass, were converted to helium, with small amounts of deuterium (a form of hydrogen) and traces of lithium. Any other element was only formed in very tiny quantities. The other 75% of the protons remained unaffected, as hydrogen nuclei.[41][42]: 27–42 

After nucleosynthesis ended, the universe entered a period known as the

decoupled") when these atoms formed can still be seen today; they form the cosmic microwave background (CMB).[42]
: 15–27 

As the universe expands, the

matter-dominated era.[43]
: 390 

In the earliest stages of the universe, tiny fluctuations within the universe's density led to

Population III stars. These were probably very massive, luminous, non metallic and short-lived. They were responsible for the gradual reionization of the universe between about 200–500 million years and 1 billion years, and also for seeding the universe with elements heavier than helium, through stellar nucleosynthesis.[44]

The universe also contains a mysterious energy—possibly a

dark-energy-dominated era.[45] In this era, the expansion of the universe is accelerating
due to dark energy.

Physical properties

Main articles:
Metric expansion of space

Of the four

strong nuclear forces, decline very rapidly with distance; their effects are confined mainly to sub-atomic length scales.[46]
: 1470 

The universe appears to have much more matter than antimatter, an asymmetry possibly related to the CP violation.[47] This imbalance between matter and antimatter is partially responsible for the existence of all matter existing today, since matter and antimatter, if equally produced at the Big Bang, would have completely annihilated each other and left only photons as a result of their interaction.[48] The universe also appears to have neither net momentum nor angular momentum, which absences follow[clarification needed] from accepted physical laws if the universe is finite. These laws are Gauss's law and the non-divergence of the stress–energy–momentum pseudotensor.[49]

Size and regions

See also: Observational cosmology
Television signals broadcast from Earth will never reach the edges of this image.

According to the general theory of relativity, far regions of

expansion of space. For example, radio messages sent from Earth may never reach some regions of space, even if the universe were to exist forever: space may expand faster than light can traverse it.[50]

The spatial region that can be observed with telescopes is called the observable universe, which depends on the location of the observer. The

parsecs), making the diameter of the observable universe about 93 billion light-years (28 billion parsecs).[51] The distance the light from the edge of the observable universe has traveled is very close to the age of the universe times the speed of light, 13.8 billion light-years (4.2×10^9 pc), but this does not represent the distance at any given time because the edge of the observable universe and the Earth have since moved further apart.[52]

For comparison, the diameter of a typical

light-years (919.8 kiloparsecs).[53] As an example, the Milky Way is roughly 100,000–180,000 light-years in diameter,[54][55] and the nearest sister galaxy to the Milky Way, the Andromeda Galaxy, is located roughly 2.5 million light-years away.[56]

Because humans cannot observe space beyond the edge of the observable universe, it is unknown whether the size of the universe in its totality is finite or infinite.[3][57][58] Estimates suggest that the whole universe, if finite, must be more than 250 times larger than a Hubble sphere.[59] Some disputed[60] estimates for the total size of the universe, if finite, reach as high as megaparsecs, as implied by a suggested resolution of the No-Boundary Proposal.[61][b]

Age and expansion

Main articles: Age of the universe and Expansion of the universe

Assuming that the Lambda-CDM model is correct, the measurements of the parameters using a variety of techniques by numerous experiments yield a best value of the age of the universe at 13.799 ± 0.021 billion years, as of 2015.[2]

Astronomers have discovered stars in the Milky Way galaxy that are almost 13.6 billion years old.

Over time, the universe and its contents have evolved. For example, the relative population of

expansion is accelerating.[63][64]

The more matter there is in the universe, the stronger the mutual

just the right mass–energy density, equivalent to about 5 protons per cubic metre, which has allowed it to expand for the last 13.8 billion years, giving time to form the universe as observed today.[65][66]

There are dynamical forces acting on the particles in the universe which affect the expansion rate. Before 1998, it was expected that the expansion rate would be decreasing as time went on due to the influence of gravitational interactions in the universe; and thus there is an additional observable quantity in the universe called the

scale factor
has been positive in the last 5–6 billion years.[67][68]

Spacetime

Main articles: Spacetime and World line
See also: Lorentz transformation

Modern physics regards

special theory of relativity, which predicts that if one observer sees two events happening in different places at the same time, a second observer who is moving relative to the first will see those events happening at different times.[70]
: 45–52  The two observers will disagree on the time between the events, and they will disagree about the distance separating the events, but they will agree on the speed of light , and they will measure the same value for the combination .[70]: 80  The square root of the absolute value of this quantity is called the interval between the two events. The interval expresses how widely separated events are, not just in space or in time, but in the combined setting of spacetime.[70]: 84, 136 [71]

The special theory of relativity cannot account for

general theory of relativity, explains gravity by recognizing that spacetime is not fixed but instead dynamical. In general relativity, gravitational force is reimagined as curvature of spacetime. A curved path like an orbit is not the result of a force deflecting a body from an ideal straight-line path, but rather the body's attempt to fall freely through a background that is itself curved by the presence of other masses. A remark by John Archibald Wheeler that has become proverbial among physicists summarizes the theory: "Spacetime tells matter how to move; matter tells spacetime how to curve",[72][73] and therefore there is no point in considering one without the other.[15] The Newtonian theory of gravity is a good approximation to the predictions of general relativity when gravitational effects are weak and objects are moving slowly compared to the speed of light.[74]: 327 [75]

The relation between matter distribution and spacetime curvature is given by the

Minkowski spacetime, but also Schwarzschild spacetimes, which describe black holes; FLRW spacetime
, which describes an expanding universe; and more.

The universe appears to be a smooth spacetime continuum consisting of three

space is observed to be very nearly flat (with a curvature close to zero), meaning that Euclidean geometry is empirically true with high accuracy throughout most of the universe.[78] Spacetime also appears to have a simply connected topology, in analogy with a sphere, at least on the length scale of the observable universe. However, present observations cannot exclude the possibilities that the universe has more dimensions (which is postulated by theories such as the string theory) and that its spacetime may have a multiply connected global topology, in analogy with the cylindrical or toroidal topologies of two-dimensional spaces.[79][80]

Shape

Main article: Shape of the universe
The three possible options for the shape of the universe

General relativity describes how spacetime is curved and bent by mass and energy (gravity). The

cosmological model
.

An important parameter determining the future evolution of the universe theory is the

density parameter, Omega (Ω), defined as the average matter density of the universe divided by a critical value of that density. This selects one of three possible geometries depending on whether Ω is equal to, less than, or greater than 1. These are called, respectively, the flat, open and closed universes.[83]

Observations, including the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE), Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP), and Planck maps of the CMB, suggest that the universe is infinite in extent with a finite age, as described by the Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker (FLRW) models.[84][79][85][86] These FLRW models thus support inflationary models and the standard model of cosmology, describing a flat, homogeneous universe presently dominated by dark matter and dark energy.[87][88]

Support of life

Main article: Fine-tuned universe

The fine-tuned universe hypothesis is the proposition that the conditions that allow the existence of observable life in the universe can only occur when certain universal fundamental physical constants lie within a very narrow range of values. According to this hypothesis, if any of several fundamental constants were only slightly different, the universe would have been unlikely to be conducive to the establishment and development of matter, astronomical structures, elemental diversity, or life as it is understood. Whether this is true, and whether that question is even logically meaningful to ask, are subjects of much debate.[89] The proposition is discussed among philosophers, scientists, theologians, and proponents of creationism.[90]

Composition

See also: Galaxy formation and evolution, Galaxy cluster, and Nebula

The universe is composed almost completely of dark energy, dark matter, and ordinary matter. Other contents are electromagnetic radiation (estimated to constitute from 0.005% to close to 0.01% of the total mass–energy of the universe) and antimatter.[91][92][93]

The proportions of all types of matter and energy have changed over the history of the universe.[94] The total amount of electromagnetic radiation generated within the universe has decreased by 1/2 in the past 2 billion years.[95][96] Today, ordinary matter, which includes atoms, stars, galaxies, and life, accounts for only 4.9% of the contents of the universe.[8] The present overall density of this type of matter is very low, roughly 4.5 × 10−31 grams per cubic centimeter, corresponding to a density of the order of only one proton for every four cubic metres of volume.[6] The nature of both dark energy and dark matter is unknown. Dark matter, a mysterious form of matter that has not yet been identified, accounts for 26.8% of the cosmic contents. Dark energy, which is the energy of empty space and is causing the expansion of the universe to accelerate, accounts for the remaining 68.3% of the contents.[8][97][98]

The formation of clusters and large-scale filaments in the cold dark matter model with dark energy. The frames show the evolution of structures in a 43 million parsecs (or 140 million light-years) box from redshift of 30 to the present epoch (upper left z=30 to lower right z=0).
A map of the superclusters and voids nearest to Earth

Matter, dark matter, and dark energy are distributed homogeneously throughout the universe over length scales longer than 300 million light-years (ly) or so.

trillion[111] (1012) stars. Between the larger structures are voids, which are typically 10–150 Mpc (33 million–490 million ly) in diameter. The Milky Way is in the Local Group of galaxies, which in turn is in the Laniakea Supercluster.[112] This supercluster spans over 500 million light-years, while the Local Group spans over 10 million light-years.[113] The universe also has vast regions of relative emptiness; the largest known void measures 1.8 billion ly (550 Mpc) across.[114]

Comparison of the contents of the universe today to 380,000 years after the Big Bang as measured with 5 year WMAP data (from 2008).[115] Due to rounding errors, the sum of these numbers is not 100%. This reflects the 2008 limits of WMAP's ability to define dark matter and dark energy.

The observable universe is

blackbody spectrum of roughly 2.72548 kelvins.[7] The hypothesis that the large-scale universe is homogeneous and isotropic is known as the cosmological principle.[116] A universe that is both homogeneous and isotropic looks the same from all vantage points[117] and has no center.[118]

Dark energy

Main article: Dark energy

An explanation for why the expansion of the universe is accelerating remains elusive. It is often attributed to "dark energy", an unknown form of energy that is hypothesized to permeate space.[119] On a mass–energy equivalence basis, the density of dark energy (~ 7 × 10−30 g/cm3) is much less than the density of ordinary matter or dark matter within galaxies. However, in the present dark-energy era, it dominates the mass–energy of the universe because it is uniform across space.[120][121]

Two proposed forms for dark energy are the cosmological constant, a constant energy density filling space homogeneously,[122] and scalar fields such as quintessence or moduli, dynamic quantities whose energy density can vary in time and space while still permeating then enough to cause the observed rate of expansion. Contributions from scalar fields that are constant in space are usually also included in the cosmological constant. The cosmological constant can be formulated to be equivalent to vacuum energy. Scalar fields having only a slight amount of spatial inhomogeneity would be difficult to distinguish from a cosmological constant.

Dark matter

Main article: Dark matter

Dark matter is a hypothetical kind of

emits nor absorbs light or any other electromagnetic radiation at any significant level. Dark matter is estimated to constitute 26.8% of the total mass–energy and 84.5% of the total matter in the universe.[97][123]

Ordinary matter

Main article: Matter

The remaining 4.9% of the mass–energy of the universe is ordinary matter, that is,

intergalactic media, planets, and all the objects from everyday life that we can bump into, touch or squeeze.[124] The great majority of ordinary matter in the universe is unseen, since visible stars and gas inside galaxies and clusters account for less than 10 percent of the ordinary matter contribution to the mass–energy density of the universe.[125][126][127]

Ordinary matter commonly exists in four states (or phases): solid, liquid, gas, and plasma.[128] However, advances in experimental techniques have revealed other previously theoretical phases, such as Bose–Einstein condensates and fermionic condensates.[129][130]

Ordinary matter is composed of two types of

baryons), and electrons that orbit the nucleus.[46]: 1476  Because most of the mass of an atom is concentrated in its nucleus, which is made up of baryons, astronomers often use the term baryonic matter
to describe ordinary matter, although a small fraction of this "baryonic matter" is electrons.

Soon after the Big Bang, primordial protons and neutrons formed from the quark–gluon plasma of the early universe as it cooled below two trillion degrees. A few minutes later, in a process known as Big Bang nucleosynthesis, nuclei formed from the primordial protons and neutrons. This nucleosynthesis formed lighter elements, those with small atomic numbers up to lithium and beryllium, but the abundance of heavier elements dropped off sharply with increasing atomic number. Some boron may have been formed at this time, but the next heavier element, carbon, was not formed in significant amounts. Big Bang nucleosynthesis shut down after about 20 minutes due to the rapid drop in temperature and density of the expanding universe. Subsequent formation of heavier elements resulted from stellar nucleosynthesis and supernova nucleosynthesis.[132]

Particles

A four-by-four table of particles. Columns are three generations of matter (fermions) and one of forces (bosons). In the first three columns, two rows contain quarks and two leptons. The top two rows' columns contain up (u) and down (d) quarks, charm (c) and strange (s) quarks, top (t) and bottom (b) quarks, and photon (γ) and gluon (g), respectively. The bottom two rows' columns contain electron neutrino (ν sub e) and electron (e), muon neutrino (ν sub μ) and muon (μ), and tau neutrino (ν sub τ) and tau (τ), and Z sup 0 and W sup ± weak force. Mass, charge, and spin are listed for each particle.
Standard model of elementary particles: the 12 fundamental fermions and 4 fundamental bosons. Brown loops indicate which bosons (red) couple to which fermions (purple and green). Columns are three generations of matter (fermions) and one of forces (bosons). In the first three columns, two rows contain quarks and two leptons. The top two rows' columns contain up (u) and down (d) quarks, charm (c) and strange (s) quarks, top (t) and bottom (b) quarks, and photon (γ) and gluon (g), respectively. The bottom two rows' columns contain electron neutrino (νe) and electron (e), muon neutrino (νμ) and muon (μ), tau neutrino (ντ) and tau (τ), and the Z0 and W± carriers of the weak force. Mass, charge, and spin are listed for each particle.
Main article: Particle physics

Ordinary matter and the forces that act on matter can be described in terms of elementary particles.[133] These particles are sometimes described as being fundamental, since they have an unknown substructure, and it is unknown whether or not they are composed of smaller and even more fundamental particles.[134][135] In most contemporary models they are thought of as points in space.[136] All elementary particles are currently best explained by quantum mechanics and exhibit wave–particle duality: their behavior has both particle-like and wave-like aspects, with different features dominating under different circumstances.[137]

Of central importance is the

interactions: the photon, the W and Z bosons, and the gluon.[134] The Standard Model predicted the existence of the recently discovered Higgs boson, a particle that is a manifestation of a field within the universe that can endow particles with mass.[139][140] Because of its success in explaining a wide variety of experimental results, the Standard Model is sometimes regarded as a "theory of almost everything".[138] The Standard Model does not, however, accommodate gravity. A true force–particle "theory of everything" has not been attained.[141]

Hadrons

Main article: Hadron

A hadron is a

strong force. Hadrons are categorized into two families: baryons (such as protons and neutrons) made of three quarks, and mesons (such as pions) made of one quark and one antiquark. Of the hadrons, protons are stable, and neutrons bound within atomic nuclei are stable. Other hadrons are unstable under ordinary conditions and are thus insignificant constituents of the modern universe.[142]
: 118–123 

From approximately 10−6 seconds after the Big Bang, during a period known as the hadron epoch, the temperature of the universe had fallen sufficiently to allow quarks to bind together into hadrons, and the mass of the universe was dominated by hadrons. Initially, the temperature was high enough to allow the formation of hadron–anti-hadron pairs, which kept matter and antimatter in thermal equilibrium. However, as the temperature of the universe continued to fall, hadron–anti-hadron pairs were no longer produced. Most of the hadrons and anti-hadrons were then eliminated in particle–antiparticle annihilation reactions, leaving a small residual of hadrons by the time the universe was about one second old.[142]: 244–266 

Leptons

Main article: Lepton

A lepton is an

composite particles such as atoms and positronium. The electron governs nearly all of chemistry, as it is found in atoms and is directly tied to all chemical properties. Neutrinos rarely interact with anything, and are consequently rarely observed. Neutrinos stream throughout the universe but rarely interact with normal matter.[146]

The lepton epoch was the period in the evolution of the early universe in which the leptons dominated the mass of the universe. It started roughly 1 second after the Big Bang, after the majority of hadrons and anti-hadrons annihilated each other at the end of the hadron epoch. During the lepton epoch the temperature of the universe was still high enough to create lepton–anti-lepton pairs, so leptons and anti-leptons were in thermal equilibrium. Approximately 10 seconds after the Big Bang, the temperature of the universe had fallen to the point where lepton–anti-lepton pairs were no longer created.[147] Most leptons and anti-leptons were then eliminated in annihilation reactions, leaving a small residue of leptons. The mass of the universe was then dominated by photons as it entered the following photon epoch.[148][149]

Photons

Main article: Photon epoch
See also: Photino

A photon is the

rest mass; this allows long distance interactions.[46]
: 1470 

The photon epoch started after most leptons and anti-leptons were annihilated at the end of the lepton epoch, about 10 seconds after the Big Bang. Atomic nuclei were created in the process of nucleosynthesis which occurred during the first few minutes of the photon epoch. For the remainder of the photon epoch the universe contained a hot dense plasma of nuclei, electrons and photons. About 380,000 years after the Big Bang, the temperature of the universe fell to the point where nuclei could combine with electrons to create neutral atoms. As a result, photons no longer interacted frequently with matter and the universe became transparent. The highly redshifted photons from this period form the cosmic microwave background. Tiny variations in temperature and density detectable in the CMB were the early "seeds" from which all subsequent structure formation took place.[142]: 244–266 

Cosmological models

Model of the universe based on general relativity

Main article: Solutions of the Einstein field equations
See also: Big Bang and Ultimate fate of the universe

gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1915 and the current description of gravitation in modern physics. It is the basis of current cosmological models of the universe. General relativity generalizes special relativity and Newton's law of universal gravitation, providing a unified description of gravity as a geometric property of space and time, or spacetime. In particular, the curvature of spacetime is directly related to the energy and momentum of whatever matter and radiation are present.[150]

The relation is specified by the Einstein field equations, a system of partial differential equations. In general relativity, the distribution of matter and energy determines the geometry of spacetime, which in turn describes the acceleration of matter. Therefore, solutions of the Einstein field equations describe the evolution of the universe. Combined with measurements of the amount, type, and distribution of matter in the universe, the equations of general relativity describe the evolution of the universe over time.[150]

With the assumption of the

metric tensor called the Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker metric
,

where (r, θ, φ) correspond to a

Friedmann equation after its inventor, Alexander Friedmann.[153]

The solutions for R(t) depend on k and Λ, but some qualitative features of such solutions are general. First and most importantly, the length scale R of the universe can remain constant only if the universe is perfectly isotropic with positive curvature (k=1) and has one precise value of density everywhere, as first noted by Albert Einstein.[150] However, this equilibrium is unstable: if the density were slightly different from the needed value, at any place, the difference would be amplified over time.

Second, all solutions suggest that there was a

quantum theory of gravity, which has not yet been formulated.[154]

Third, the curvature index k determines the sign of the curvature of constant-time spatial surfaces[152] averaged over sufficiently large length scales (greater than about a billion light-years). If k=1, the curvature is positive and the universe has a finite volume.[155] A universe with positive curvature is often visualized as a three-dimensional sphere embedded in a four-dimensional space. Conversely, if k is zero or negative, the universe has an infinite volume.[155] It may seem counter-intuitive that an infinite and yet infinitely dense universe could be created in a single instant when R = 0, but exactly that is predicted mathematically when k is nonpositive and the cosmological principle is satisfied. By analogy, an infinite plane has zero curvature but infinite area, whereas an infinite cylinder is finite in one direction and a torus is finite in both. A toroidal universe could behave like a normal universe with periodic boundary conditions.

The

expansion of the universe is accelerating; if this acceleration is sufficiently rapid, the universe may eventually reach a Big Rip. Observationally, the universe appears to be flat (k = 0), with an overall density that is very close to the critical value between recollapse and eternal expansion.[157]

Multiverse hypotheses

Main articles:
Bubble universe theory
See also: Eternal inflation

Some speculative theories have proposed that our universe is but one of a set of disconnected universes, collectively denoted as the multiverse, challenging or enhancing more limited definitions of the universe.[19][158] Scientific multiverse models are distinct from concepts such as alternate planes of consciousness and simulated reality.

decoherence, with all states of the wave functions being realized in separate worlds. Effectively, in the many-worlds interpretation the multiverse evolves as a universal wavefunction. If the Big Bang that created our multiverse created an ensemble of multiverses, the wave function of the ensemble would be entangled in this sense.[160] Whether scientifically meaningful probabilities can be extracted from this picture has been and continues to be a topic of much debate, and multiple versions of the many-worlds interpretation exist.[161][162][163] (The subject of the interpretation of quantum mechanics is in general marked by disagreement.)[164][165][166]

The least controversial, but still highly disputed, category of multiverse in Tegmark's scheme is Level I. The multiverses of this level are composed by distant spacetime events "in our own universe". Tegmark and others[167] have argued that, if space is infinite, or sufficiently large and uniform, identical instances of the history of Earth's entire Hubble volume occur every so often, simply by chance. Tegmark calculated that our nearest so-called doppelgänger is 1010115 metres away from us (a double exponential function larger than a googolplex).[168][169] However, the arguments used are of speculative nature.[170] Additionally, it would be impossible to scientifically verify the existence of an identical Hubble volume.

It is possible to conceive of disconnected spacetimes, each existing but unable to interact with one another.[168][171] An easily visualized metaphor of this concept is a group of separate soap bubbles, in which observers living on one soap bubble cannot interact with those on other soap bubbles, even in principle.[172] According to one common terminology, each "soap bubble" of spacetime is denoted as a universe, whereas humans' particular spacetime is denoted as the universe,[19] just as humans call Earth's moon the Moon. The entire collection of these separate spacetimes is denoted as the multiverse.[19]

With this terminology, different universes are not

chaotic inflation to be separate universes, though in this model these universes all share a causal origin.[19]

Historical conceptions

See also: Cosmology, Timeline of cosmological theories, Nicolaus Copernicus § Copernican system, and Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica § Beginnings of the Scientific Revolution

Historically, there have been many ideas of the cosmos (cosmologies) and its origin (cosmogonies). Theories of an impersonal universe governed by physical laws were first proposed by the Greeks and Indians.[13] Ancient Chinese philosophy encompassed the notion of the universe including both all of space and all of time.[173] Over the centuries, improvements in astronomical observations and theories of motion and gravitation led to ever more accurate descriptions of the universe. The modern era of cosmology began with Albert Einstein's 1915 general theory of relativity, which made it possible to quantitatively predict the origin, evolution, and conclusion of the universe as a whole. Most modern, accepted theories of cosmology are based on general relativity and, more specifically, the predicted Big Bang.[174]

Mythologies

Main articles: Creation myth, Cosmogony, and Religious cosmology

Many cultures have stories describing the origin of the world and universe. Cultures generally regard these stories as having some truth. There are however many differing beliefs in how these stories apply amongst those believing in a supernatural origin, ranging from a god directly creating the universe as it is now to a god just setting the "wheels in motion" (for example via mechanisms such as the big bang and evolution).[175]

Ethnologists and anthropologists who study myths have developed various classification schemes for the various themes that appear in creation stories.

Prakrti, the creation myth of the Serers,[178] or the yin and yang of the Tao
.

Philosophical models

Further information: Cosmology
See also:
Islamic cosmology, and Philosophy of space and time

The

Platonic solids. Democritus, and later philosophers—most notably Leucippus—proposed that the universe is composed of indivisible atoms moving through a void (vacuum), although Aristotle did not believe that to be feasible because air, like water, offers resistance to motion. Air will immediately rush in to fill a void, and moreover, without resistance, it would do so indefinitely fast.[13]

Although Heraclitus argued for eternal change,[180] his contemporary Parmenides emphasized changelessness. Parmenides' poem On Nature has been read as saying that all change is an illusion, that the true underlying reality is eternally unchanging and of a single nature, or at least that the essential feature of each thing that exists must exist eternally, without origin, change, or end.[181] His student Zeno of Elea challenged everyday ideas about motion with several famous paradoxes. Aristotle responded to these paradoxes by developing the notion of a potential countable infinity, as well as the infinitely divisible continuum.[182][183] Unlike the eternal and unchanging cycles of time, he believed that the world is bounded by the celestial spheres and that cumulative stellar magnitude is only finitely multiplicative.

The

Kanada, founder of the Vaisheshika school, developed a notion of atomism and proposed that light and heat were varieties of the same substance.[184] In the 5th century AD, the Buddhist atomist philosopher Dignāga proposed atoms to be point-sized, durationless, and made of energy. They denied the existence of substantial matter and proposed that movement consisted of momentary flashes of a stream of energy.[185]

The notion of temporal finitism was inspired by the doctrine of creation shared by the three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Christian philosopher, John Philoponus, presented the philosophical arguments against the ancient Greek notion of an infinite past and future. Philoponus' arguments against an infinite past were used by the early Muslim philosopher, Al-Kindi (Alkindus); the Jewish philosopher, Saadia Gaon (Saadia ben Joseph); and the Muslim theologian, Al-Ghazali (Algazel).[186]

god or goddess.[189][190]
Pantheistic concepts date back thousands of years, and pantheistic elements have been identified in various religious traditions.

Astronomical concepts

Main articles: History of astronomy and Timeline of astronomy
3rd century BCE calculations by Aristarchus on the relative sizes of, from left to right, the Sun, Earth, and Moon, from a 10th-century AD Greek copy

The earliest written records of identifiable predecessors to modern astronomy come from Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia from around 3000 to 1200 BCE.[191][192] Babylonian astronomers of the 7th century BCE viewed the world as a flat disk surrounded by the ocean,[193][194] and this forms the premise for early Greek maps like those of Anaximander and Hecataeus of Miletus.

Later

matter was entirely contained within the terrestrial sphere, and it obeyed fundamentally different rules from heavenly material.[195][196]

The post-Aristotle treatise

De Mundo (of uncertain authorship and date) stated, "Five elements, situated in spheres in five regions, the less being in each case surrounded by the greater—namely, earth surrounded by water, water by air, air by fire, and fire by ether—make up the whole universe".[197]

This model was also refined by

Pythagorean philosopher Philolaus, postulated (according to Stobaeus' account) that at the center of the universe was a "central fire" around which the Earth, Sun, Moon and planets revolved in uniform circular motion.[199]

The

Greek astronomer Aristarchus of Samos was the first known individual to propose a heliocentric model of the universe. Though the original text has been lost, a reference in Archimedes' book The Sand Reckoner
describes Aristarchus's heliocentric model. Archimedes wrote:

You, King Gelon, are aware the universe is the name given by most astronomers to the sphere the center of which is the center of the Earth, while its radius is equal to the straight line between the center of the Sun and the center of the Earth. This is the common account as you have heard from astronomers. But Aristarchus has brought out a book consisting of certain hypotheses, wherein it appears, as a consequence of the assumptions made, that the universe is many times greater than the universe just mentioned. His hypotheses are that the fixed stars and the Sun remain unmoved, that the Earth revolves about the Sun on the circumference of a circle, the Sun lying in the middle of the orbit, and that the sphere of fixed stars, situated about the same center as the Sun, is so great that the circle in which he supposes the Earth to revolve bears such a proportion to the distance of the fixed stars as the center of the sphere bears to its surface.[200]

Aristarchus thus believed the stars to be very far away, and saw this as the reason why stellar parallax had not been observed, that is, the stars had not been observed to move relative each other as the Earth moved around the Sun. The stars are in fact much farther away than the distance that was generally assumed in ancient times, which is why stellar parallax is only detectable with precision instruments. The geocentric model, consistent with planetary parallax, was assumed to be the explanation for the unobservability of stellar parallax.[201]

Flammarion engraving, Paris 1888

The only other astronomer from antiquity known by name who supported Aristarchus's heliocentric model was

Albumasar[208] and Al-Sijzi.[209]

Model of the Copernican Universe by Thomas Digges in 1576, with the amendment that the stars are no longer confined to a sphere, but spread uniformly throughout the space surrounding the planets

The Aristotelian model was accepted in the Western world for roughly two millennia, until Copernicus revived Aristarchus's perspective that the astronomical data could be explained more plausibly if the Earth rotated on its axis and if the Sun were placed at the center of the universe.[210]

In the center rests the Sun. For who would place this lamp of a very beautiful temple in another or better place than this wherefrom it can illuminate everything at the same time?

— Nicolaus Copernicus, in Chapter 10, Book 1 of De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestrum (1543)

As noted by Copernicus, the notion that the

Tusi (1201–1274) and Ali Qushji (1403–1474).[213]

This cosmology was accepted by

Olbers' paradox in the 19th century.[217] Newton believed that an infinite space uniformly filled with matter would cause infinite forces and instabilities causing the matter to be crushed inwards under its own gravity.[214] This instability was clarified in 1902 by the Jeans instability criterion.[218] One solution to these paradoxes is the Charlier universe, in which the matter is arranged hierarchically (systems of orbiting bodies that are themselves orbiting in a larger system, ad infinitum) in a fractal way such that the universe has a negligibly small overall density; such a cosmological model had also been proposed earlier in 1761 by Johann Heinrich Lambert.[53][219]

During the 18th century,

Triangulum among others, were entire galaxies outside our own, thus proving that the universe consists of a multitude of galaxies.[222]

The modern era of

general theory of relativity to model the structure and dynamics of the universe.[223]
The discoveries of this era, and the questions that remain unanswered, are outlined in the sections above.

Map of the observable universe with some of the notable astronomical objects known as of 2018. The scale of length increases exponentially toward the right. Celestial bodies are shown enlarged in size to be able to understand their shapes.
Location of the Earth in the universe
Radcliffe Wave
Orion Arm
Milky Way
Local Group
Virgo SCl
Laniakea SCl
Observable universe

See also

References

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b According to modern physics, particularly the theory of relativity, space and time are intrinsically linked as spacetime.
  2. nanometers or gigaparsecs
    , as the differences would disappear into the error.

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    "The Buddhists denied the existence of substantial matter altogether. Movement consists for them of moments, it is a staccato movement, momentary flashes of a stream of energy... "Everything is evanescent",... says the Buddhist, because there is no stuff... Both systems [Sānkhya, and later Indian Buddhism] share in common a tendency to push the analysis of existence up to its minutest, last elements which are imagined as absolute qualities, or things possessing only one unique quality. They are called "qualities" (guna-dharma) in both systems in the sense of absolute qualities, a kind of atomic, or intra-atomic, energies of which the empirical things are composed. Both systems, therefore, agree in denying the objective reality of the categories of Substance and Quality,... and of the relation of Inference uniting them. There is in Sānkhya philosophy no separate existence of qualities. What we call quality is but a particular manifestation of a subtle entity. To every new unit of quality corresponds a subtle quantum of matter which is called guna, "quality", but represents a subtle substantive entity. The same applies to early Buddhism where all qualities are substantive... or, more precisely, dynamic entities, although they are also called dharmas ('qualities')."
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  201. Chaldaean
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  217. JSTOR 90845
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