If there is no dark energy, what is the future of the universe? (See Figure 25-18 of Universe, 11th ed.)

A)The future of the universe is not related to the geometry of space.
B)It will expand forever, not stopping even after infinite time, regardless of how much matter is in the universe.
C)It will expand to a maximum size and then recollapse.
D)It will barely expand forever, reaching zero expansion speed after infinite time.

Question

If there is no dark energy, what is the future of the universe? (See Figure 25-18 of Universe, 11th ed.)

A)The future of the universe is not related to the geometry of space. 
B)It will expand forever, not stopping even after infinite time, regardless of how much matter is in the universe. 
C)It will expand to a maximum size and then recollapse. 
D)It will barely expand forever, reaching zero expansion speed after infinite time.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

If there is no dark energy, the fate of the universe is determined by the amount of matter in the universe and the geometry of space. If the amount of matter is high enough, gravity will eventually overcome the expansion and cause the universe to recollapse. This is known as the Big Crunch scenario, which is depicted in Figure 25-18 as the "closed universe" model.

If There Is No Dark Energy, What Is the Future