The Elastic Universe

The Elastic Universe

Edwin Hubble’s main observation was that all galaxies that are not gravitationally bound to ours are speeding away from us and each other at greater and greater speeds depending on their distance from us. Tthis suggests certain deductions. Rewinding time back to the origin like a VCR recording, it is thought that this observation implies that the universe must have originated as a point particle with infinite density and an infinite gravitational field whereupon the absolute value of time must have started at exactly zero. According to this postulate, before “the Big Bang”, there was nothing, not even time.

But, there is an easy alternative notion that does not postulate new physics if one allows that spacetime itself may act as an elastic entity overall. Then, one may be able to rewind time only to the point where the universe had just rebounded from its last oscillation. This oscillating universe may still have had a finite size, density and gravitational field. What then?

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey has shown that the universe has structure. This fact alone has implications, but the structure itself makes a difference. It has the structure of an open celled foam. It has the structure of a crosslinked polymer. Its network of entangled connected filaments, if viewed in Einstein’s “block time”, may therefore act like an elastomer, like rubber, in a new time dimension.

We should not care what happened before the universe began oscillating nor what made the universe begin to oscillate. These are not proper questions because they make no logical sense. They presume too much. We have no idea of what “before” means in this case.

Contemplating this elastomeric universe rebounding from its last oscillation, we see that it may well have started its rebound in an extremely dense (not infinite) state with a very high gravitational field. As it proceeded to rebound, its integrity would have been conserved by its property of possessing a strong gravitational field. But, its observed apparent increasing kinematic motion among its parts would draw upon its inherent internal potential energy that would be latent in its compressed or distorted momentary initial instantaneous form.

Its early kinematic motion would have resulted from its sudden reversal of direction and so its gravitational force would have been very important at that time. But, its continuing expansion at an increasing rate will have to depend on the potential energy that has been stored within its structure. The rate may be increasing, but it should be increasing at a diminishing amount. The total available gravitational force might be called “Dark Matter”. The total available elastic potential energy might be called “Dark Energy”.

What is your idea concerning this possibility?