The Big Rip is a cosmological hypothesis about the ultimate fate of the Universe.

The hypothesis relies crucially on the type of dark energy in the universe. The key value is the equation of state w, the ratio between the dark energy pressure and its energy density. At w < -1, the universe will eventually be pulled apart. First the galaxies would be separated from each other, then gravity would be too weak to hold individual galaxies together. Approximately three months before the end, solar systems will be gravitationally unbound. In the last minutes, stars and planets will come apart, and atoms will be destroyed a fraction of a second before the end of time.

The authors of this hypothesis calculate that the end of time would be approximately 3.5×10¹⁰ years after the Big Bang, or 2.0×10¹⁰ years from now.

See also

• List of astronomical topics
• Heat-death of the Universe
• Big Crunch
• Accelerating universe
• Ultimate fate of the Universe
• Phantom Energy

External link

• Robert R. Caldwell, Marc Kamionkowski, and Nevin N. Weinberg, "Phantom Energy and Cosmic Doomsday" (PDF format)