THE future's not what it used to be. Cosmologists were once confident they knew how the universe would end: it would just fade away. An ever colder, ever dimmer cosmos would slowly wind down until there were only cinders where the stars once shone. But that's history.
The latest research suggests many different possible futures. Cosmic cycles of death and rebirth might be on the cards, or a very peculiar end when the vacuum of space suddenly turns into something altogether different. The universe might collapse back in on itself in a big crunch. Or we could be in for an even more violent end, called the big rip. The slow drift into darkness is still a contender, but fear not: that long night could be a lot more interesting than you might think - imagine the cosmos filled with giant diamonds and you'll have an inkling of where we ...
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