Will the last man out switch out the lights .... This is now the case for the universe, which to quote one researcher " ... will decline from here on in, like an old age that lasts forever. The Universe has basically sat down on the sofa, pulled up a blanket and is about to nod off for an eternal doze."
I really like that imagery .... '... an eternal doze'. Rather like something from a Discworld story by the late Terry Prachett.
The reason for this, is that all the evidence points to the fact that star formation peaked a few billion years ago and has been declining ever since, and we are now seeing a gathering decline in the total energy output of galaxies at three different ages. From this researchers were able to extrapolate that there has been a steady slump in total output, from 2.25 billion years ago to 0.75 billion years ago, the Universe's output apparently fell by about 40%.
I really like that imagery .... '... an eternal doze'. Rather like something from a Discworld story by the late Terry Prachett.
The reason for this, is that all the evidence points to the fact that star formation peaked a few billion years ago and has been declining ever since, and we are now seeing a gathering decline in the total energy output of galaxies at three different ages. From this researchers were able to extrapolate that there has been a steady slump in total output, from 2.25 billion years ago to 0.75 billion years ago, the Universe's output apparently fell by about 40%.
The Universe Is Huge .....
