<p>Both are true.</p>

<p>The universe is "dying" in the sense that stars eventually run out of hydrogen, and there aren't infinite amounts of hydrogen in galaxies to replace old stars. This will take a very long time, but eventually all stars will burn out and new stars will stop forming. This is what the study recently in the news is saying.</p>

<p>The universe is ever expanding in the sense that distances between galaxies which are not bound together gravitationally is expanding all the time. If you look at very distant galaxies, they are all receding into the distance.</p>

<p>Combine these two facts and the result is that the universe will become more and more "rarefied" (distances between galaxies will keep expanding), and also all existing stars in galaxies will burn out over trillions of years.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-12T02:45:58.450Z
Peak star formation has been known to be billions of years past for some time now. https://www.ras.org.uk/news-and-press/219-news-2012/2187-cosmic-gdp-crashes-97-as-star-formation-slumps Not sure why that fact is hitting the press so hard today.
Wayfaring Stranger
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-11T23:48:14.027Z
2015-08-11T23:48:14.027Z
Florin Andrei
<p>How does the idea that the universe is dying (trumpeted as some big new revelation the past few days on several new sites I keep seeing pop up on google news) square with the idea that the universe is ever expanding?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-12T22:02:29.153Z
But what about the theory that the Universe has no beginning and no end and has always existed ? Then this would have to mean that it cannot die would it not ?
Peter U
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-08-12T22:36:15.753Z
That would contradict the Big Bang Theory, which is well accepted. It also doesn't answer the question; it could be a comment on the question.
Keith Thompson
<universe><space><cosmological-inflation>
The universe is dying vs the universe is ever expanding
developerwjk
# The universe is dying vs the universe is ever expanding

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-08-11)

How does the idea that the universe is dying (trumpeted as some big new revelation the past few days on several new sites I keep seeing pop up on google news) square with the idea that the universe is ever expanding?

**Tags:** universe, space, cosmological-inflation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: But what about the theory that the Universe has no beginning and no end and has always existed ? Then this would have to mean that it cannot die would it not ?  
> **username_2**: That would contradict the Big Bang Theory, which is well accepted. It also doesn't answer the question; it could be a comment on the question.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2015-08-11. Score: 4 | Accepted answer

Both are true.

The universe is "dying" in the sense that stars eventually run out of hydrogen, and there aren't infinite amounts of hydrogen in galaxies to replace old stars. This will take a very long time, but eventually all stars will burn out and new stars will stop forming. This is what the study recently in the news is saying.

The universe is ever expanding in the sense that distances between galaxies which are not bound together gravitationally is expanding all the time. If you look at very distant galaxies, they are all receding into the distance.

Combine these two facts and the result is that the universe will become more and more "rarefied" (distances between galaxies will keep expanding), and also all existing stars in galaxies will burn out over trillions of years.

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: Peak star formation has been known to be billions of years past for some time now. https://www.ras.org.uk/news-and-press/219-news-2012/2187-cosmic-gdp-crashes-97-as-star-formation-slumps Not sure why that fact is hitting the press so hard today.  

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