is space infinite or would it eventually meet back in the same spot like planets?

Answer 1

There would be ways to tell if space was warped four-dimensionally. One way is by looking at pi.

Pi is the ratio of a circle's diameter to its circumference. Now, a circle is a two-dimensional object, but you can draw it on a three-dimensional surface. If you do so, you will discover that the ratio of the diameter to its circumference is NOT pi. On a balloon, for example, the curved surface makes the diameter longer but doesn't change the circumference.

So there are ways to detect hyperdimensional warp without having to directly observe those other dimensions. And scientists have made these measurements. If there is any kind of 'bending' in our space, it is too small for our instruments to detect. Space is flat. You will NOT end up in the same place if you travel one direction long enough to 'wrap' around the edge of the universe.

Which leaves your other question: is space infinite? The simplest answer is that nobody is really sure.

Here's what we ARE sure of: the universe is bigger than we can see. If (as scientists believe) the universe is fourteen billion years old, then logically enough there would have been time for light to get to us even if it had started from fourteen billion light-years away in any direction. Interestingly enough, the universe is bigger than this.

This is because the universe is expanding. At one point the entire volume of the universe was infinitestimal. Now it's much, much bigger. The difference is NOT just objects inside the universe moving apart... space itself is expanding - there is more and more room to put the same number of objects inside. And not only is it expanding, it's expanding faster and faster as time goes by.

Current estimates for the size of the universe are generally around two or three times the volume we can see. We don't even know exactly where we are in the universe because we can't see any edges - there are just more and more galaxies no matter which direction we look. Further, because the rate of expansion is increasing, it is possible that we will NEVER see these edges and NEVER know exactly how big the universe is... unless we find some way to travel faster than light.

There is no reason to believe that space is infinite, and logically there's not even a way to guess what lies outside the region that things could have travelled to during the age of our universe. There IS reason to believe that it's NOT infinite... infinite universes mean infinite amounts of vacuum energy which plays hob with a variety of well-accepted equations.

So probably not infinite, but really big. Probably flat and non-repeating. Hope that helps!

Answer 2

If you're playing the old classic arcade game "Asteroids" then space wraps around at the edges, and you will come in on the other side of the screen.

Some scientists theorize that space does wrap around, like a four dimensional Moebus strip or something, but I think the general consensus among cosmologists is, space probably goes out to infinity or maybe to some distant, finite edge, without wrapping around on itself.

A space that extends infinitely, or one that ends at an "edge," makes the most sense intuitively. One which "wraps around" like an Asteroids video game screen sounds cool but doesn't have much logical basis and seems counter-intuitive. The truth is, nobody really knows.

Answer 3

I have reason to believe that there is a limit . If there was something that is in infinite values then why is there a limit on everything else. I think that the universe is similar to an atom: High dense center with scattered parts but mostly empty space. so if you think about it, we could just be living in an atom and there are things that are discovering us. or we are the big being and the atoms we know of are universi.

Answer 4

By the time you reach back to the spot, like you are suggesting traveling around an 'object,' time will no longer exist, travelling at the speed of light. The universe has a heck of a head start on you. I think you are correct in your line of thinking, however. If you could exceed the speed of light somehow and catch up, you would automatically slow down to the speed the universe is expanding.

edit:
Nothing else is limitless. Why would the universe be? I don't agree with what the majority say that space is limitless.

Answer 5

The universe is a boundless finite and expanding.

Imagine you are a four dimensional creature, the universe would likely be decribed by you as the surface of a swelling baloon. (This is also a good example of how 'hyperspace' can shorten distances between points, as the distance connecting two points on the surface of the baloon is shorter than the arc following the surface. The higher the dimension the more severe the short-cut you can make in your travel.)

So it is THEORETICALLY possible to travel in one direction and meet back where you started, if you can outdistance the expansion factor of the universe.

Answer 6

Infinite

Answer 7

Cosmologist say the universe is constantly expanding, so that would mean that the universe is not infinite. But we
will never know for sure since we can't travel fast enough
to catch up with it. It's been expanding some were between
13 and 15 billion years and it keeps gaining speed.

Answer 8

Hello Manny,
Space (..outer space..) is limitless, infinite--has no
end. Human minds can't comprehend that con-
cept because our minds are finite--we only deal with absolutes, meaning that "it has a beginning,
therefore it has an end." But, space has no end!

Answer 9

Your guess is as good as anyone's but the current model says that space is flat. That means it does not curve back on itself.

Answer 10

According to Modest Mouse's song "3rd Planet"....

"The universe is shaped exactly like the Earth, if you go straight long enough you'll end up where you were..."

I have adapted this into my philosophy of space :)