We have all heard stories about how asteroids, tidal waves, tropical patterns and earthquakes can potentially destroy the world. However, we have made plenty of strong efforts over the years to protect ourselves from these problems. We know how they work and we have reinforced our properties, and built communities with the intention of keeping the damages from such serious problems from being any worse than they could be.
It’s also easy to predict when such disasters can happen. We have our own warning systems for them as well so we can at least be prepared for when such a major event might take place in the future.
However, there are some disasters that are truly out of this world. These are serious problems that we have no real way to protect ourselves from. The worst part is that these are disasters that could potentially happen tomorrow or even an hour from now.
The greatest concern is that these disasters are so strong and powerful that it would be impossible for anyone to prevent them from happening or to keep their damages from being any worse than they could be. These may be frightening points but they are concerns that have to be explored.
Solar Expansion
The sun has been expanding over the years and is becoming hotter than ever. This comes from many nuclear reactions taking place within the sun. These reactions are causing the volume and mass of the already large body to become even bigger over time.
The most significant concern about these nuclear reactions is that they could potentially become unstable. Right now these reactions have been rather consistent and predictable. It would take billions of years for the sun to become large enough to destroy the planet at this point. However, the fact that nuclear reactions can easily become unstable creates real potential for the sun to grow at an even faster rate.
If such an event happens, then a solar expansion will take place. The sun will have grown to where it will become increasingly hot on the planet. As a result, the planet will be placed in an extreme amount of peril that it would not recover from.
The solar expansion will cause the planet to dry up quickly. The oceans will dry out and everyone would become dehydrated and their bodies will wear out rather quickly. This in turn can cause a fast death to anyone who is still alive as this moves along.
Also, it may be extremely difficult for any kind of life on the planet to survive. This is due to the water all around the planet having evaporated to where there is no way how most creatures can thrive. Simply put, the planet would end up falling into the same problems as that of many other planets like Mars where there is no water and an extreme lack of life.
Galactic Cannibalism
Galactic cannibalism is a fascinating concept that was first discovered in 2003. Reports sent to the American Astronomical Society stated that large spiral galaxies can grow over time by devouring smaller galaxies. That is, the larger galaxy is engaging in a cannibalistic activity of destroying another galaxy.
The report found this by exploring the leftover trail of stars that were found near a space where the Andromeda galaxy merged with another galaxy. The second galaxy appeared to have been destroyed as the Andromeda galaxy had devoured the entire area, leaving behind only a few stars that were left over.
The way how galactic cannibalism works is fascinating. A series of tidal gravitational movements will occur between two galaxies. As this occurs, many planets and other bodies within the galaxies will crash into each other, thus destroying many surfaces. In addition, some super massive black holes may be found around some areas where these mergers take place in.
These threats will cause many bodies to be destroyed. Considering the size of the Earth when compared with many other planets in our solar system and others, it would not be a surprise to see the Earth be destroyed during such an event.
At this point, the Andromeda galaxy would be the most likely to all galaxies to interact with ours. This is because it is the closest galaxy to us and has been moving closer to us over the years. Fortunately, it would take about two to three billion years for the galaxy to interact with ours.
Still, there are many dark galaxies all around the universe. These are galaxies that feature black holes and dark matter. They are especially hard to see because they do not have any visible stars. These are galaxies that are very tough to find and the odds are very good there are many dark galaxies that have not been explored just yet. Simply put, our days could be numbered by one of these dark galaxies at any moment.
The Big Rip
We are all familiar with the concept of the Big Bang, the event that started the universe. However, there is one fascinating theory that suggests that the universe could end in its own unique way. This is also known as the Big Rip.
The Big Rip is a theory stating that the universe will have expanded to the point where it will no longer be able to handle its massive size. It will eventually start to tear apart, thus causing massive destruction throughout the universe. This is a relatively complicated concept that entails loads of science and equations but it is an event that could potentially happen.
It has been found over the years that the universe has been expanding quite a bit. The expansion has been going on in between galaxies and is expected to keep on growing in this pattern. The possibility for the Big Rip to move into our galaxy and the universe in general could occur at some point in the future.
The worst part about the Big Rip is that there is no real way how anyone could potentially predict when it will happen or just what the overall capacity of the universe truly is.
In addition, the approximate maximum size of the universe is unknown at this point. Most calculations suggest that the universe could continue to grow for several billions of years. Still, this is a dramatic concern and for all we know, there is always going to be that potential for some kind of dramatic disaster to come about and be a certain threat.
Gamma-Ray Bursts
A gamma-ray burst is a flash of gamma rays that are caused by explosions within galaxies. This is an extremely bright event that entails high-frequency electromagnetic radiation flowing out of an area. It will be extremely destructive to all the bodies that are right near the radiation zone.
The energy that is created can be even more powerful than what the sun normally generates. It could particularly be worse than any massive nuclear bomb that has ever been set off on this planet as the power will be equal to the amount of energy that the sun will have let off over millions of years at a time.
It does not take much time for such a burst to impact the world. Many gamma-ray bursts that have been identified in far-off galaxies have been known to last milliseconds. Others can go on for minutes at a time.
It is believed that these explosions are caused by hypernovas. These are large stars that have exploded. Another theory is that these bursts may be caused by dead stars, or neutron stars, colliding with one another.
A gamma-ray burst could cause an extensive amount of damage on Earth if it were to ever happen in the area. A burst like this can cause the development of ultraviolent rays that can cause serious damages to the ozone layer and potentially cause a mass extinction.
It is believed that gamma-ray bursts may have caused the Ordovician extinction, a massive destruction of life on Earth about 440 million years ago. This is one of the most significant extinctions in the history of the planet.
Some even believe that only about 10 percent of all galaxies around the world could actually survive without being harmed by gamma-ray bursts. This is based on the locations of these bursts and how they have evolved.
The greatest concern about these bursts is that it is tough to figure out just where they will take place. Scientific evidence has found that these bursts have taken place at an extended variety of spaces and are often rather irregular in terms of how they are set off.
Stellar Black Holes
Black holes are known to be dangerous in that they can taken in practically anything that comes in its path. However, celestial bodies are able to avoid these black holes quite well, what with these holes coming in many different sizes. However, there is always going to be the potential for a stellar black hole to be formed. This is a kind of black hole that can be even more dangerous and harmful to the universe as there will be a real potential for such a black hole to be a whole lot larger.
A stellar black hole is a type of black hole that has been formed by a star’s collapse. That is, the gravity from the star has been reversed to where the body will no longer be stable. It has a core of more than two solar masses in size. This makes it to where the pressure that is created by the black hole would be impossible to surmount and escape. There is a minimal amount of electric charge created by such a black hole as well.
These black holes are much larger than the sun and most other types of black holes. The biggest worry about a stellar black hole is that, like with other black holes, it is impossible to identify where it is until an object in space gets in contact with it. Any illustrations that you might see of such black holes are simply displays of what can happen when such a black hole operates.
If the Earth was to be enveloped by a stellar black hole, then all of the mass that is found around the planet would be dramatically compacted. All lifeforms would be crushed and forced into a very small body of mass, thus effectively destroying the planet.
It is known that there are about twenty of these stellar black holes that have been found throughout the world. As the technology used to find such things has improved, the potential to find more of these black holes will increase. Still, there is always that look potential that some items within the universe may shift enough to where it will be rather hard to figure out where items will move.