three ways the universe could end! by Ethan Kwan

well, there are three scenarios, and we’re not sure which one it will be. this is what I’m gonna be using for terminology for this… um, blog.

imagine two rubber bands pulling two objects together. the closer these objects get, the rubber band gets tighter. that’s gravity. now imagine two hooks pulling these objects apart. that’s dark energy.

there are 3 scenarios.

the big freeze

the big freeze is where the hooks are pulling just hard enough so that eventually, the rubber band becomes limp. the universe will keep getting bigger. and bigger.

and bigger

the big rip

but what if the rubber bands snap because the hooks are pulling very hard? this is called the big rip, where the expansion of the universe is so great, that it overcomes not only the gravity force, but also the electromagnetic, strong, and weak nuclear forces that hold atoms together. then atoms will also disintegrate! oh, no! then stars, planets, galaxies will be split into atoms, and then the atoms will split too!

the big crunch

what if the rubber band wins? then, the rubber band will stop the hooks, and pull everything into a single infinitely dense point. maybe, from that, we can get a new big bang, and then big crunch, big bang, big crunch, big bang, big crunch, big bang, big crunch, big bang, big crunch, big bang, and so on? this is known as a big bounce! cool!

the end