0:00:00.000,0:00:00.770 Supported By: 0:00:00.770,0:00:02.636 Supported By:[br]Protocol Labs 0:00:02.636,0:00:02.936 Protocol Labs 0:00:02.936,0:00:04.621 Protocol Labs[br]What does our future hold? 0:00:06.147,0:00:10.336 Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence...[br] 0:00:10.336,0:00:13.386 Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence...[br]- Helen Keller 0:00:14.610,0:00:18.177 What does the future look like? 0:00:18.687,0:00:22.133 How will the universe meet its end? 0:00:22.677,0:00:25.577 We may never be truly certain. 0:00:26.428,0:00:30.578 But science has begun to paint a stunning picture of how the future might unfold. 0:00:31.559,0:00:34.513 Let's take a journey to the end of time. 0:00:34.813,0:00:38.620 We will travel through time exponentially, doubling our speed every 5 seconds. 0:00:38.902,0:00:44.634 The vision of the future will surely evolve[br]as we probe for more clues. But one thing is clear: 0:00:44.814,0:00:46.536 The universe has only just begun. 0:00:46.536,0:00:47.536 2019[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:47.536,0:00:48.541 2020[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:48.541,0:00:48.791 2021[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:48.791,0:00:49.175 2021[br]The Holocene has ended.[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:49.175,0:00:49.560 2021[br]The Holocene has ended.[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:49.560,0:00:50.583 2022[br]The Holocene has ended.[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:50.583,0:00:51.319 2023[br]The Holocene has ended.[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:51.319,0:00:51.569 2023[br][Anthrpocene era] 0:00:51.972,0:00:52.234 What we do now, 0:00:52.234,0:00:52.484 What we do now, 0:00:52.484,0:00:52.974 What we do now, 0:00:52.974,0:00:53.344 What we do now, 0:00:53.715,0:00:55.245 and in the next few years, 0:00:56.245,0:00:58.241 will profoundly affect 0:00:58.241,0:01:01.516 the next few thousand years. 0:01:03.928,0:01:06.250 The only conditions modern humans 0:01:06.250,0:01:09.740 have ever known so far, are changing. 0:01:10.080,0:01:11.349 And changing fast. 0:01:13.161,0:01:15.782 Nothing stays the same on this planet. 0:01:15.782,0:01:17.702 Everything changes. 0:01:17.941,0:01:18.671 The Earth is going into one of these jumps 0:01:18.671,0:01:20.231 The Earth is going into one of these jumps 0:01:20.231,0:01:21.254 and you don't know what is going 0:01:21.254,0:01:23.236 to be on the other side of those jumps. 0:01:24.313,0:01:25.746 The Earth is always jumping.[br][Earth's magnetic field flips] 0:01:25.746,0:01:25.996 [Earth's magnetic field flips] 0:01:26.546,0:01:30.389 [Comet Hale-Bopp returns] 0:01:32.140,0:01:32.775 [Drastic sea level rise] 0:01:32.775,0:01:34.715 Things move on this planet[br][Drastic sea level rise] 0:01:35.220,0:01:36.677 Things are not still! 0:01:37.237,0:01:38.641 Everything is turning.[br][30 meter asteroid impact] 0:01:38.641,0:01:39.380 [30 meter asteroid impact][br] 0:01:39.380,0:01:41.203 [Antares goes supernova] 0:01:42.723,0:01:44.509 [Sahara becomes tropical] 0:01:46.359,0:01:48.511 [Constellations begin to wander] 0:01:50.121,0:01:51.768 [Voyager I passes nearby star] 0:01:53.818,0:01:55.493 [Interglacial period ends] 0:01:57.608,0:02:00.138 [Supervolcano eruption] 0:02:05.444,0:02:07.501 [New Hawaiian island appears] 0:02:08.049,0:02:09.571 [New island chains] 0:02:13.555,0:02:15.495 [Apollo footprints fade] 0:02:17.535,0:02:18.601 [Betelgeuse goes supernova] 0:02:21.578,0:02:24.433 [Stone monuments erode] 0:02:29.525,0:02:31.485 [Deadly gamma ray burst] 0:02:32.635,0:02:35.274 [Mars moon becomes a ring] 0:02:37.674,0:02:39.264 [Saturn's rings vanish] 0:02:41.688,0:02:43.497 [Antarctica melts] 0:02:44.828,0:02:46.237 [Major asteroid impact] 0:02:50.833,0:02:55.953 [New supercontinent] 0:02:57.733,0:02:58.793 [Sun increases luminosity][br] 0:02:58.793,0:02:59.752 As it begins to run out of fuel,[br][Sun increases luminosity] 0:02:59.752,0:03:01.037 As it begins to run out of fuel,[br][Photosynthesis ceases] 0:03:01.037,0:03:02.737 the sun won't simply fade away to nothing.[br][Photosynthesis ceases] 0:03:02.737,0:03:03.957 the sun won't simply fade away to nothing.[br][All plant life dies] 0:03:03.957,0:03:05.413 [All plant life dies][br] 0:03:05.413,0:03:05.883 [Oceans evaporate][br] 0:03:05.883,0:03:07.678 Its core will collapse,[br][Oceans evaporate] 0:03:07.678,0:03:07.928 [Oceans evaporate][br] 0:03:07.928,0:03:10.007 and the extra heat this generates[br][Oceans evaporate] 0:03:10.007,0:03:11.908 will cause its outer layers to expand.[br][Oceans evaporate] 0:03:11.908,0:03:12.620 will cause its outer layers to expand.[br][All life dies] 0:03:12.620,0:03:13.183 [All life dies][br] 0:03:13.183,0:03:16.777 [Sun expands] 0:03:16.777,0:03:18.737 [Sun becomes red giant] 0:03:18.737,0:03:21.093 [Earth destroyed by the dying Sun] 0:03:21.093,0:03:22.182 [Sun becomes a White Dwarf][br] 0:03:22.182,0:03:24.605 The sun is now dead.[br][Sun becomes a White Dwarf] 0:03:24.605,0:03:26.767 Its remains slowly cooling[br][Sun becomes a White Dwarf] 0:03:26.767,0:03:30.242 in the freezing temperatures of deep space. 0:03:39.952,0:03:43.771 The fate of the sun is the same as for all stars. 0:03:44.381,0:03:47.711 One day, they must all eventually die, 0:03:47.711,0:03:49.650 and the cosmos will be plunged 0:03:49.650,0:03:52.410 into eternal night. 0:03:54.133,0:03:57.509 All stars eventually will run out of fuel.[br][Stars begin to die off] 0:03:57.509,0:03:58.299 [Stars begin to die off][br] 0:03:58.299,0:03:59.939 The temperature of the universe drops.[br][Stars begin to die off] 0:03:59.939,0:04:00.189 [Stars begin to die off] 0:04:00.939,0:04:02.499 Stars, one by one, 0:04:02.499,0:04:04.257 in the night sky, 0:04:04.257,0:04:06.226 will turn off. 0:04:07.982,0:04:10.234 And there will be no more new stars 0:04:10.234,0:04:11.674 created. 0:04:13.005,0:04:14.778 And so the universe will end 0:04:14.948,0:04:16.238 not with a bang, 0:04:16.238,0:04:18.488 but with the whimper. 0:04:21.364,0:04:23.130 And not in fire,[br][Last Red Dwarf stars die] 0:04:23.130,0:04:23.380 [Last Red Dwarf stars die] 0:04:23.380,0:04:26.240 but in ice.[br][Last Red Dwarf stars die] 0:04:26.240,0:04:27.742 [Last Red Dwarf stars die] 0:04:29.694,0:04:37.594 [Degenerate era][br]"With the death of the last sun, the age of starlight comes to an end." 0:04:37.594,0:04:39.801 [Degenerate era] 0:04:39.801,0:04:40.879 [Degenerate era][br]"The universe becomes a cosmic boneyard, strewn with remnants of dead stars." 0:04:40.879,0:04:47.566 "The universe becomes a cosmic boneyard, strewn with remnants of dead stars." 0:04:50.259,0:04:56.649 "Our Sun becomes a White Dwarf - a hot, dense, shrunken stellar corpse." 0:05:01.502,0:05:03.592 With no fuel left to burn, 0:05:03.672,0:05:05.742 a white dwarf's faint glow 0:05:05.852,0:05:08.492 comes from the last residual heat 0:05:08.492,0:05:10.472 from its extinguished furnace. 0:05:15.513,0:05:18.273 Looking at it from where the earth is now, 0:05:18.273,0:05:20.933 it would only generate the same amount of light 0:05:20.933,0:05:22.603 as the full moon 0:05:22.643,0:05:25.571 on a clear night. 0:05:28.960,0:05:31.500 The faint glow of white dwarfs 0:05:31.500,0:05:34.230 will provide the only illumination 0:05:34.230,0:05:36.503 in a dark and empty void 0:05:36.933,0:05:39.490 littered with dead stars 0:05:39.490,0:05:41.890 and black holes. 0:05:50.491,0:05:52.926 In some ways it's kind of a ghost universe 0:05:52.926,0:05:54.044 it's the corpses, 0:05:54.044,0:05:55.164 the zombie stars, 0:05:55.226,0:05:56.686 that will take us into the future. 0:06:06.742,0:06:13.152 "Over time, gravity ejects dead stars and planets from their galaxies, sending them out into the freezing void." 0:06:18.105,0:06:22.955 "By chance, some Brown Dwarfs collide and form accidental new stars." 0:06:27.621,0:06:31.560 "Colliding neutron stars puncture the darkness with ultra bright supernova." 0:06:31.560,0:06:32.880 [Neutron star collision][br]Colliding neutron stars puncture the darkness with ultra bright supernova." 0:06:32.880,0:06:35.530 [Neutron star collision] 0:06:51.215,0:06:58.015 "Any surviving life forms may find refuge around aging White Dwarfs." 0:07:05.750,0:07:11.620 "But in time, even the White Dwarfs will fade and die." 0:07:13.238,0:07:17.238 A black dwarf will be the final fate of those last stars[br][Stars become Black Dwarfs] 0:07:17.238,0:07:19.751 White dwarfs that have become so cold,[br][Stars become Black Dwarfs] 0:07:19.751,0:07:23.491 that they barely emit any more heat or light. 0:07:27.513,0:07:29.234 Black dwarfs are dark, 0:07:29.234,0:07:30.249 dense, 0:07:30.249,0:07:34.094 decaying balls of degenerate matter. 0:07:34.274,0:07:37.223 Little more than the ashes of stars, 0:07:38.243,0:07:41.983 their constituent atoms are so severely crushed 0:07:41.983,0:07:44.523 that black dwarfs are a million times 0:07:44.523,0:07:48.263 denser than our sun. 0:07:54.505,0:07:57.178 Stars take so long to reach this point 0:07:57.455,0:07:59.125 we believe there are currently 0:07:59.125,0:08:02.705 no black dwarfs in the universe. 0:08:10.876,0:08:16.996 "Any matter that fails to escape its galaxy [br]is sucked into a supermassive black hole at the center." 0:08:17.036,0:08:26.344 [Black holes swallow stray matter] 0:08:26.344,0:08:31.497 [Black holes swallow stray matter][br]"Long dormant black holes flare up in a blaze of glory." 0:08:51.678,0:08:59.498 [Degenerate era][br]"The rotational energy of black holes becomes the last reliable source of power for any exotic future civilizations." 0:09:05.261,0:09:07.211 We have a pace of life that's based 0:09:07.211,0:09:09.246 on the energy available to us now. 0:09:10.492,0:09:12.252 You could imagine living, 0:09:12.252,0:09:13.742 conscious systems, 0:09:13.742,0:09:15.842 which have a very different pace and therefore, 0:09:15.952,0:09:17.602 can extend out, at least, 0:09:17.602,0:09:19.916 a lot farther than you'd imagine otherwise. 0:09:21.511,0:09:23.689 You could have a living system where if, 0:09:23.689,0:09:26.419 it had a thought every 10 trillion years, 0:09:26.419,0:09:27.924 that would seem normal. 0:09:30.759,0:09:31.507 Ever if 0:09:31.507,0:09:34.557 our life dies out, one could imagine 0:09:34.847,0:09:37.737 at some time arbitrarily far in the future, 0:09:37.737,0:09:41.147 a fluctuation occurs which allows intelligent life 0:09:41.147,0:09:43.227 to exist again, for a little while. 0:09:44.491,0:09:47.501 So you might have islands in time of intelligence. 0:09:56.346,0:10:04.156 "As the expansion of the universe accelerates, it [br]begins to spread matter apart faster than the speed of light."[br][Expansion of spacetime] 0:10:04.156,0:10:05.505 [Expansion of spacetime] 0:10:05.505,0:10:07.230 "By this point, distant galaxies and stars are receding do fast that their light has become undetectable."[br][Expansion of spacetime] 0:10:07.230,0:10:13.159 "By this point, distant galaxies and stars are receding do fast that their light has become undetectable." 0:10:14.510,0:10:21.860 "The secrets of the cosmos are locked away forever." 0:10:25.266,0:10:28.250 "Current theories predict that atoms themselves will begin to decay, destroying all remaining matter in the universe." 0:10:28.250,0:10:33.080 [Proton decay][br]"Current theories predict that atoms themselves will begin to decay, destroying all remaining matter in the universe." 0:10:33.080,0:10:33.380 [Proton decay] 0:10:34.538,0:10:37.268 A proton, one of the fundamental building blocks 0:10:37.268,0:10:39.758 of atomic matter, what makes us up, 0:10:39.778,0:10:42.158 can just spontaneously fall apart. 0:10:44.256,0:10:47.236 Any material that evades the pull of a black hole 0:10:47.266,0:10:51.186 eventually dies away as its protons disintegrate. 0:10:58.419,0:11:06.789 "Proton decay is still unproven - and so this chapter of the future could look very different in light of new discoveries." 0:11:17.985,0:11:20.497 The matter inside black dwarf's, 0:11:20.527,0:11:22.767 the last matter in the universe, 0:11:23.248,0:11:25.782 will eventually evaporate away, 0:11:25.822,0:11:29.478 and be carried off into the void as radiation 0:11:29.508,0:11:34.608 leaving absolutely nothing behind. 0:11:34.641,0:11:42.234 [Black hole era] 0:11:42.234,0:11:44.554 With the black dwarfs gone,[br][Black hole era] 0:11:44.554,0:11:48.244 there won't be a single atom of matter left.[br][Black hole era] 0:11:48.244,0:11:48.494 [Black hole era] 0:11:51.729,0:11:55.219 All that will remain of our once-rich cosmos 0:11:55.269,0:11:58.619 will be particles of light and black holes. 0:12:06.861,0:12:09.751 "The Black Hole Era begins." 0:12:11.870,0:12:16.990 "No planets, no stars, no lingering stellar remnants for life to cling to." 0:12:20.530,0:12:26.240 "Yet even now, time has only begun to tick." 0:12:28.610,0:12:31.750 "On the scale of a human lifetime, the universe has just emerged from the womb." 0:12:35.972,0:12:42.492 "Cold, dark, and empty - this is how the cosmos will spend most of its life." 0:12:47.114,0:12:56.354 "Our universe gives life only a brief moment to shine - a haven in time, safe from its fiery birth and icy death." 0:12:56.748,0:12:59.988 The arrow of time creates a bright window 0:12:59.988,0:13:02.258 in the universe's adolescence 0:13:02.258,0:13:04.468 during which life is possible. 0:13:08.008,0:13:11.238 But it's a window that doesn't stay open for long. 0:13:14.999,0:13:18.759 As a fraction of the lifespan of the universe, 0:13:18.759,0:13:20.759 as measured from its beginning 0:13:20.759,0:13:23.479 to the evaporation of the last black hole, 0:13:23.759,0:13:24.745 life, 0:13:24.745,0:13:25.729 life, as we know it, 0:13:25.729,0:13:27.349 life, as we know it, is only possible for 0:13:27.349,0:13:27.749 one[br](10^(0)) 0:13:27.749,0:13:28.756 one thousandth[br](10^(-3)) 0:13:28.756,0:13:29.226 one thousandth of a[br](10^(-3)) 0:13:29.226,0:13:29.716 one thousandth of a billion[br](10^(-12)) 0:13:29.716,0:13:30.186 one thousandth of a billion billion[br](10^(-21)) 0:13:30.186,0:13:30.746 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth[br](10^(-30)) 0:13:30.746,0:13:31.256 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion[br](10^(-39)) 0:13:31.256,0:13:31.756 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion billion[br](10^(-48)) 0:13:31.756,0:13:32.320 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion billion billionth[br](10^(-57)) 0:13:32.320,0:13:32.750 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion billion billionth billion[br](10^(-66)) 0:13:32.750,0:13:33.522 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion billion billionth billion billion[br](10^(-75)) 0:13:33.522,0:13:34.632 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion billion billion billion billion billionth,[br](10^(-84)) 0:13:34.632,0:13:36.476 one thousandth of a billion billion billionth,[br]billion billion billion billion billion billionth, of a percent.[br](10^(-84)%) 0:13:44.766,0:13:45.766 Black holes become 0:13:45.766,0:13:48.256 the fundamental building block of the universe. 0:13:52.517,0:13:53.987 A galaxy will basically be 0:13:53.987,0:13:55.777 a supermassive black hole in the center, 0:13:55.777,0:13:57.787 with smaller black holes orbiting it. 0:14:01.743,0:14:06.763 Zombie galaxies filled with black holes continue to evolve. 0:14:10.263,0:14:11.784 They'll eat each other, and they'll get bigger, 0:14:11.784,0:14:12.764 and maybe they'll fall into 0:14:12.764,0:14:14.964 the supermassive black hole and it'll get bigger. 0:14:15.014,0:14:17.754 The universe will still be an exciting, dynamic place. 0:14:17.754,0:14:20.254 it's just that the time scales we're talking about 0:14:20.254,0:14:22.024 are now trillions of years, 0:14:22.024,0:14:24.504 instead of thousands or millions of years. 0:14:29.891,0:14:35.951 [Black home mergers][br]"In this far flung age, black hole mergers become the main event." 0:14:38.602,0:14:45.282 "Some grow to enormous sizes, possibly trillions of times the mass of our sun." 0:14:49.395,0:14:55.475 "When they merge, they send out powerful gravity waves that resonate throughout the universe." 0:14:56.243,0:15:01.500 Black holes can bang on space-time like mallets on a drum. 0:15:08.761,0:15:11.501 And have a very characteristic song, 0:15:17.737,0:15:21.037 Imagine two black holes that have lived a long life together 0:15:22.009,0:15:24.505 At the end of their lives they're going around each other, 0:15:24.505,0:15:28.275 crossing thousands of kilometers in a fraction of a second. 0:15:32.232,0:15:33.202 As they do so, 0:15:33.202,0:15:36.522 they leave behind in their wake a ringing of space 0:15:36.522,0:15:38.762 an actual wave on space-time. 0:15:53.256,0:15:56.496 Space squeezes and stretches as it emanates out 0:15:56.496,0:15:59.006 from these black holes banging on the universe. 0:16:02.988,0:16:04.918 Those are the gravitational waves 0:16:04.918,0:16:07.518 and are literally the sounds of space ringing 0:16:07.518,0:16:09.478 and they will travel out from these black holes 0:16:09.478,0:16:13.758 at the speed of light as they ring down and coalesce into one, 0:16:13.758,0:16:16.358 spinning, quiet, black hole. 0:16:20.993,0:16:22.983 If you were standing near enough, 0:16:23.013,0:16:24.953 your ear would resonate 0:16:25.163,0:16:27.503 with the squeezing and stretching of space, 0:16:27.533,0:16:29.743 you would literally hear the sound. 0:16:38.994,0:16:41.224 Imagine a lighter black hole 0:16:41.224,0:16:43.114 falling into a very heavy black hole. 0:16:43.224,0:16:44.954 The sound you're hearing 0:16:44.954,0:16:46.984 is a light black hole banging 0:16:46.984,0:16:49.584 on space each time it gets close. 0:16:58.007,0:17:01.497 As it falls in, it gets faster, and it gets louder. 0:17:22.745,0:17:25.745 Scientists used to think black holes were immortal, 0:17:25.765,0:17:28.225 but even these will one day die. 0:17:29.270,0:17:32.990 Now we're talking about time scales of unimaginable length 0:17:32.990,0:17:35.230 quadrillions of years into the future. 0:17:35.977,0:17:36.997 On that time scale, 0:17:36.997,0:17:40.237 even the black holes begin to evaporate. 0:17:44.355,0:17:46.509 [Hawking radiation] 0:17:47.245,0:17:49.515 [Hawking radiation] 0:17:50.018,0:17:52.008 [Hawking radiation] 0:17:52.008,0:17:52.258 [Hawking radiation][br]According to quantum mechanics, 0:17:52.258,0:17:53.388 According to quantum mechanics, 0:17:53.388,0:17:54.488 [Hawking radiation][br]According to quantum mechanics, 0:17:54.488,0:17:54.978 space is filled with virtual particles 0:17:54.978,0:17:56.748 [Hawking radiation][br]space is filled with virtual particles 0:17:56.748,0:17:57.498 space is filled with virtual particles 0:17:57.498,0:17:59.754 [Hawking radiation][br]and antiparticles that are constantly materializing in pairs, 0:17:59.754,0:18:01.238 and antiparticles that are constantly materializing in pairs, 0:18:01.238,0:18:02.718 [Hawking radiation][br]and antiparticles that are constantly materializing in pairs, 0:18:02.718,0:18:03.498 [Hawking radiation][br]separating, coming together again, 0:18:03.498,0:18:04.744 separating, coming together again, 0:18:04.744,0:18:06.164 [Hawking radiation][br]separating, coming together again, 0:18:06.164,0:18:06.741 [Hawking radiation][br]and annihilating each other. 0:18:06.741,0:18:07.281 and annihilating each other. 0:18:07.281,0:18:08.281 [Hawking radiation][br]and annihilating each other. 0:18:09.508,0:18:11.228 [Hawking radiation] 0:18:12.986,0:18:15.506 [Hawking radiation][br]In the presence of a black hole, 0:18:15.766,0:18:16.636 one member of a pair of 0:18:16.636,0:18:17.437 [Hawking radiation][br]one member of a pair of 0:18:17.437,0:18:18.746 [Hawking radiation][br]virtual particles may fall into the hole, 0:18:18.746,0:18:19.756 virtual particles may fall into the hole, 0:18:19.756,0:18:20.246 [Hawking radiation][br]virtual particles may fall into the hole, 0:18:20.246,0:18:20.496 virtual particles may fall into the hole, 0:18:20.985,0:18:22.376 leaving the other member 0:18:22.376,0:18:24.009 without a partner with which to annihilate. 0:18:24.009,0:18:24.499 [Hawking radiation][br]without a partner with which to annihilate. 0:18:24.499,0:18:25.499 without a partner with which to annihilate. 0:18:27.264,0:18:27.744 [Hawking radiation][br]The forsaken particle appears to be radiation 0:18:27.744,0:18:29.994 The forsaken particle appears to be radiation 0:18:29.994,0:18:30.504 [Hawking radiation][br]The forsaken particle appears to be radiation 0:18:30.504,0:18:31.274 The forsaken particle appears to be radiation 0:18:31.274,0:18:32.974 emitted by the black hole. 0:18:32.974,0:18:33.514 [Hawking radiation][br]emitted by the black hole. 0:18:34.278,0:18:34.758 [Hawking radiation] 0:18:35.241,0:18:35.778 [Hawking radiation] 0:18:36.503,0:18:37.493 And so, black holes are not eternal. 0:18:37.493,0:18:41.033 And so, black holes are not eternal.[br][Black hole evaporation] 0:18:43.233,0:18:47.233 They evaporate away at an increasing rate, 0:18:47.233,0:18:51.523 until they vanish in a gigantic explosion. 0:18:57.500,0:19:01.747 Quantum mechanics has allowed particles and radiation[br][Black holes begin to die] 0:19:01.747,0:19:04.758 to escape from the ultimate prison - 0:19:04.918,0:19:06.498 A black hole. 0:19:06.871,0:19:13.091 "Black holes begin to evaporate away, erasing the last large-scale structures in the universe." 0:19:14.754,0:19:18.754 "As they die, they light up the darkness one by one." 0:20:00.057,0:20:00.307 "As the black holes slowly die off, the universe continues to expand, driven by a mysterious force we don't yet understand." 0:20:00.307,0:20:08.767 [Dark Energy inflates the universe][br]"As the black holes slowly die off, the universe continues to expand, driven by a mysterious force we don't yet understand." 0:20:11.896,0:20:17.726 "This is the frontier of human knowledge - a frontier ripe for exploration and discovery." 0:20:17.726,0:20:20.044 Philosophers and poets have asked the question, 0:20:20.044,0:20:22.254 "Will the world end in fire or ice?" 0:20:23.487,0:20:26.247 We can now give an answer. 0:20:28.233,0:20:30.733 The latest evidence shows that the universe 0:20:30.733,0:20:31.753 is not slowing down, 0:20:31.753,0:20:34.273 but it's speeding up out of control. 0:20:35.242,0:20:38.022 And the universe, we think, will die in ice 0:20:38.996,0:20:41.516 trillions upon trillions of years from now. 0:20:45.273,0:20:47.753 Empty space itself has energy. 0:20:47.753,0:20:50.013 In every little cubic centimeter of space, 0:20:50.013,0:20:51.503 whether or not there's stuff, 0:20:51.503,0:20:52.755 whether or not there's particles, 0:20:52.755,0:20:54.255 matter, radiation, whatever... 0:20:54.255,0:20:57.255 there is still energy, even in the space itself. 0:21:00.484,0:21:02.424 And this energy, according to Einstein, 0:21:02.424,0:21:04.724 exerts a push on the universe. 0:21:07.009,0:21:09.959 What is the weird stuff that's accelerating the universe? 0:21:10.499,0:21:12.489 We call it 'Dark energy'. 0:21:14.749,0:21:18.219 And this stuff is the dominant stuff of the universe 0:21:18.259,0:21:20.989 almost 3/4 of the matter-energy content 0:21:20.989,0:21:23.499 of the universe is this dark energy 0:21:23.529,0:21:25.749 and we don't know what it is. 0:21:29.718,0:21:32.194 Dark energy, unlike matter or radiation, 0:21:32.234,0:21:35.214 does not dilute away, as the universe expands. 0:21:36.504,0:21:38.724 This has crucial implications 0:21:38.754,0:21:41.733 for what the universe is going to do in the future. 0:21:43.253,0:21:45.473 So, what will be the future of the universe? 0:21:47.753,0:21:51.023 Well, if the dark energy remains dominant and repulsive, 0:21:52.233,0:21:54.783 the universe will expand forever. 0:22:00.508,0:22:03.508 Faster and faster and faster with time - 0:22:04.233,0:22:06.233 A runaway universe. 0:22:08.268,0:22:11.018 70% of the energy of the universe 0:22:11.078,0:22:15.738 resides in empty space and we don't understand why. 0:22:17.511,0:22:19.751 But we do know what will happen. 0:22:21.254,0:22:23.754 If that energy continues to be there, 0:22:23.814,0:22:27.244 the universe will become cold and dark and empty. 0:22:30.002,0:22:32.021 That's the future as it might be. 0:22:33.006,0:22:34.496 We don't know because 0:22:34.536,0:22:37.246 we don't yet understand the nature of dark energy. 0:22:37.276,0:22:37.967 until we do, 0:22:38.017,0:22:39.517 we won't know the future, 0:22:39.557,0:22:41.737 we won't even understand our own origins 0:22:41.778,0:22:43.247 and that's why we want to know 0:22:43.247,0:22:45.237 and study this subject. 0:22:47.096,0:22:54.226 "Discovering the true nature of dark energy could change our vision of the future dramatically." 0:22:55.889,0:23:02.899 "If it somehow weakens over time, the universe could collapse under gravity - a 'big crunch'." 0:23:04.098,0:23:10.228 "Given a boost, it could tear the universe apart at the seams - a 'big rip'." 0:23:12.487,0:23:22.017 [Black hole era][br]"Physicists increasingly suspect that there may be multiple universes beyond our own, each with their own unique laws of physics." 0:23:25.074,0:23:33.744 "Some would harbor the right conditions for life. Others could collapse or be ripped apart." 0:23:35.372,0:23:41.592 "Others sill could be far more exotic than anything we could imagine." 0:23:46.065,0:23:51.875 "New pieces to this puzzle are out there somewhere, waiting to be found." 0:23:52.584,0:23:54.474 The forecast does seem to be for 0:23:54.474,0:23:58.274 an ever-colder, ever-emptier universe. 0:24:02.980,0:24:04.720 But then of course we have to ask, 0:24:04.720,0:24:08.000 "Could that end lead to a new beginning?" 0:24:10.488,0:24:13.488 And there are ideas, whereby what actually is the end 0:24:13.488,0:24:15.328 of our universe, could in some sense, 0:24:15.328,0:24:17.488 lead to the beginning of a new one. 0:24:23.088,0:24:29.628 "Some speculate that there may be a way to escape our universe before entropy erases everything." 0:24:32.064,0:24:38.054 "We could create simulated virtual universes, or with enough energy, create another one just like our own." 0:24:43.507,0:24:44.967 We've worked out the mathematics, 0:24:44.967,0:24:45.747 the equations, 0:24:45.747,0:24:46.739 they seem to say that 0:24:46.739,0:24:48.759 if you have an atom smasher, 0:24:48.759,0:24:50.749 that can constrict tremendous 0:24:50.749,0:24:52.994 amounts of energy at a single point, 0:24:52.994,0:24:55.514 you can perhaps open up a gateway - 0:24:55.514,0:24:56.574 A 'Baby universe' 0:25:02.740,0:25:06.250 Facing the death of everything there is 0:25:06.250,0:25:09.970 this perhaps is their only possibility of escape. 0:25:11.727,0:25:15.007 And this also raises a very intriguing possibility, 0:25:15.007,0:25:16.777 sheer pure speculation of course, 0:25:17.017,0:25:20.767 that perhaps any universe that has intelligent life in it, 0:25:20.847,0:25:23.742 will create baby universes, will create 'Lifeboats', 0:25:23.792,0:25:25.940 and will proliferate child universes. 0:25:25.940,0:25:27.600 and will proliferate child universes.[br][Last Black Hole evaporates] 0:25:27.600,0:25:29.742 [Last Black Hole evaporates] 0:25:29.742,0:25:33.502 So an evolution may take place among universes,[br][Last Black Hole evaporates] 0:25:33.502,0:25:34.502 in the multiverse.[br][Last Black Hole evaporates] 0:25:34.762,0:25:38.732 Survival of the fittest may take place. 0:25:38.732,0:25:42.252 So those universes which do not have intelligent life are 'Infertile', 0:25:42.252,0:25:43.472 they have no children. 0:25:43.752,0:25:45.392 But those universes that have 0:25:45.392,0:25:47.772 mild temperatures, stars like ours, 0:25:47.772,0:25:50.982 would create civilizations that could open up child universes 0:25:50.982,0:25:54.242 and they would then proliferate. 0:25:59.249,0:26:05.819 "If there is no way to escape the universe, then entropy will march on, destroying the last remaining supermassive black holes." 0:26:08.969,0:26:13.319 "As the last one explodes and dies, it bathes the universe in light one last time." 0:26:13.319,0:26:15.789 [Black Hole era][br]"As the last one explodes and dies, it bathes the universe in light one last time." 0:26:15.789,0:26:16.629 [Last Black Hole evaporates][br]"As the last one explodes and dies, it bathes the universe in light one last time." 0:27:11.492,0:27:11.523 THE END. 0:27:24.476,0:27:27.746 After an unimaginable length of time, 0:27:27.831,0:27:30.966 even the black holes will have evaporated, 0:27:31.036,0:27:32.762 and the universe will be 0:27:32.832,0:27:35.976 nothing but a sea of photons 0:27:36.056,0:27:38.996 gradually tending towards the same temperature 0:27:39.056,0:27:41.878 as the expansion of the universe cools them 0:27:41.918,0:27:43.488 towards absolute zero. 0:27:57.489,0:27:59.249 Once the very last remnants 0:27:59.289,0:28:01.239 of the very last stars 0:28:01.289,0:28:04.239 have finally decayed away to nothing, 0:28:04.289,0:28:07.169 and everything reaches the same temperature, 0:28:07.239,0:28:11.495 the story of the universe finally comes to an end. 0:28:12.365,0:28:14.885 "TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:14.885,0:28:16.955 For the first time in its life,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:16.955,0:28:20.505 the universe will be permanent and unchanging.[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:20.505,0:28:21.305 "TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:21.305,0:28:24.055 Entropy finally stops increasing, [br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:24.055,0:28:27.975 because the cosmos cannot get any more disordered.[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:27.975,0:28:28.655 "TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:28.655,0:28:28.780 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS" 0:28:28.780,0:28:28.905 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS 0:28:28.905,0:28:29.030 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, 0:28:29.030,0:28:29.155 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, 0:28:29.155,0:28:29.280 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, F 0:28:29.280,0:28:29.405 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FO 0:28:29.405,0:28:29.530 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOR 0:28:29.530,0:28:29.655 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FORE 0:28:29.655,0:28:29.780 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREV 0:28:29.780,0:28:29.905 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVE 0:28:29.905,0:28:30.030 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVER 0:28:30.030,0:28:30.405 Nothing happens,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVER. 0:28:30.405,0:28:32.115 and it keeps not happening,[br]"TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVER. 0:28:32.115,0:28:33.005 "TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVER. 0:28:33.005,0:28:33.785 "TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVER." 0:28:33.785,0:28:35.304 "TIME BECOMES MEANINGLESS, FOREVER." 0:28:37.234,0:28:45.084 "Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence...[br]...and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content."[br]- Helen Keller 0:28:47.792,0:28:51.962 CRAFTED BY MELODYSHEEP 0:28:53.360,0:28:53.974 Supported by: 0:28:53.974,0:28:55.909 Supported by:[br]Protocol Labs 0:28:55.909,0:28:56.333 Protocol Labs[br] 0:28:56.333,0:28:56.893 Protocol Labs[br]What will you discover?[br] 0:28:56.893,0:28:58.602 Protocol Labs[br]What will you discover?[br]How will you change the future? 0:28:58.602,0:28:58.992 What will you discover?[br]How will you change the future? 0:28:59.504,0:29:00.504 Featuring the voices of: 0:29:00.504,0:29:00.754 Featuring the voices of:[br]David Attenborough 0:29:00.754,0:29:01.004 Featuring the voices of:[br]Craig Childs 0:29:01.004,0:29:01.254 Featuring the voices of:[br]Brian Cox 0:29:01.254,0:29:01.504 Featuring the voices of:[br]Neil Degrasse Tyson 0:29:01.504,0:29:01.754 Featuring the voices of:[br]Michelle Thaller 0:29:01.754,0:29:02.004 Featuring the voices of:[br]Lawrence Krauss 0:29:02.004,0:29:02.254 Featuring the voices of:[br]Michio Kaku 0:29:02.254,0:29:02.504 Featuring the voices of:[br]Mike Rowe 0:29:02.504,0:29:02.754 Featuring the voices of:[br]Phil Plait 0:29:02.754,0:29:03.004 Featuring the voices of:[br]Janna Levin 0:29:03.004,0:29:03.254 Featuring the voices of:[br]Stephen Hawking 0:29:03.254,0:29:03.504 Featuring the voices of:[br]Sean Carroll 0:29:03.504,0:29:03.754 Featuring the voices of:[br]Alex Filippenko 0:29:03.754,0:29:04.544 Featuring the voices of:[br]Martin Rees 0:29:05.599,0:29:09.629 Thanks to:[br]Juan Benet & my supporters on Patreon[br]Patreon.com/melodysheep 0:29:11.082,0:29:13.612 MELODYSHEEP.COM | @MUSICALSCIENCE 0:29:15.061,0:29:16.456 For Ash