• Question: Since space is always expanding, what is it expanding into?

    Asked by STEM 123 to Anna, James, Joe, Leonie, Olivia on 16 Mar 2015.
    • Photo: Olivia Lynes

      Olivia Lynes answered on 16 Mar 2015:

      The short answer- we don’t know. It depends on your definition of the universe and if it has “edges” so to speak.

      If we live in an infinite (has no end) universe which has no universe, then the answer has to be nothing. If something is infinite, adding more to it doesn’t make it more infinte. It has no edges that would expand as there is no outside, the universe just goes on forever.

      But if the universe has a boundary and so is finite, we may be expanding into something. that boundary is so far away we can’t see if and it has no impact on us. If we can’t see the boundary now, it constantly moving away from us means we never will and we will never find out what’s on the other side. How frustrating!

    • Photo: James Pope

      James Pope answered on 16 Mar 2015:

      Hi STEM123,
      Great answer for Olivia, what I would add is that the main theory that says our universe is finite is the multiverse theory and so we would be expanding up against other universes (as I understand it).

      As Olivia says, we won’t know which is really frustrating!

    • Photo: Joe Spencer

      Joe Spencer answered on 17 Mar 2015:

      Olivia is spot on there

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