Ologies with Alie Ward Cosmology (THE UNIVERSE) Part 2 Encore with Katie Mack
Sep 12, 2023
Astrophysicist Katie Mack discusses cosmic vertigo, vacuum decay, asteroid impact threats, and the fate of the universe. They also touch on reducing light pollution, the shape of the universe, and express gratitude towards individuals involved in the podcast.
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Asteroid Threat and Defense
- Early detection of asteroids allows possible deflection, such as gravitational tractor or changing reflectivity.
- Monitoring half the sky currently lags; more effort and funding are needed to track all hazardous objects.
Universe's Fate: Heat Death
- Current data suggests the universe will expand forever, leading to heat death: stars burn out, black holes evaporate, and everything decays.
- Dark energy accelerates expansion, causing distant galaxies to eventually be unobservable.
Milky Way-Andromeda Collision
- The Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies will collide in about four billion years, merging with spectacular star formation bursts.
- Despite the collision, our solar system will likely remain unaffected due to large interstellar distances.