Does our Universe have a mirror twin?

Today, the many worlds theory ispart of popular culture and is constantly present in films and TV shows. At the same time, the Multiverse is not an invention of science fiction writers - it is based on scientific theories that describe the structure of our world. The most popular is the theory of inflation, according to which the Universe began to expand after the Big Bang, and its properties are explained by the structure and distribution of galaxies. Stanford University professor Andrei Linde is a proponent of the multiverse theory. He notes that our understanding of reality is incomplete, and the existence of parallel universes cannot be confirmed experimentally (at least not yet). But what if we look at the universe differently, assuming the existence of only one alternative reality - the so-called mirror universe? Researchers believe that with its help it is possible to resolve the crisis of cosmology. But how? Let's figure it out!

The mirror universe theory is gaining popularity among cosmologists again

Theoretical physics has reached such heights that (we) can calculate even what is impossible to imagine - L. D. Landau

Content

• 1 Mirror neutrinos
• 2 Mirror universe
• 3 Antimatter Universe
• 4 So many universes

Mirror neutrinos

The fact that the Universe is expanding with acceleration became known in the late 1990s and led to a revision of the physical laws that explain the structure of the Universe. The emergence of a hypothetical dark energy, uniformly filling the space andrepelling massive bodies, is intended to explain the rapid expansion of the universe, but its existence has not been proven. The picture is complemented by mysterious dark matter, which does not interact with electromagnetic radiation and manifests itself through the gravitational effect on the observed objects. But what about the mirror universe?

The answer suggests itself - the theory of the mirror universe suggests beautiful and simple solution to complex problems. It is based on the existence of hypothetical particles, the so-called mirror neutrinos, the search for which has been going on for many years but has not been successful.

Some researchers believe that mirror neutrons may be candidates for the dark matter component.

More on the topic: There may be a parallel universe in which time goes backwards

In 2008, researchers from the PetersburgInstitute of Nuclear Physics (PNPI RAS) considered the hypotheses of the origin and structure of the Universe at the level of elementary particles. Of great importance was the lifespan of a neutron - an unstable elementary particle devoid of an electric charge. It sounds unclear, so let's try to clarify: scientists wanted to understand how long a neutron can exist outside the atomic nucleus.

The measurements were accurate and consistent with the Standard Model, which describes the electromagnetic, weak and strong interaction of all elementary particles, allowing scientists to understand How is matter formed in the universe? and why neutron lifetime important for the Standard Model.

According to Doctor of Physical and Mathematical SciencesAnatoly Serebrov, “the value of the neutron lifetime obtained during the study better describes the process of primary nucleosynthesis during the formation of the Universe” (by nucleosynthesis, scientists understand the natural process of formation of nuclei of chemical elements heavier than hydrogen).

The 20th century allowed us to look inside the universe itself.

Serebrov also voiced the bold assumption that ordinary neutrons can pass into another universe, turning into mirror neutrons. This process looks like this - it seems that the particles simply disappeared during the experiment.

In 2018, physicists from the National LaboratoryOak Ridge (USA) returned to Serebrov's assumption and came to the same conclusion. If mirror neutrons really exist, they are sent to a mirror universe, completely separate from ours and with its own laws of physics.

Interesting fact
Mirror neutrons are often referred to as sterile due to their inability to participate in most interactions.

Modern physical theory admitsthe existence of a mirror universe, and its inhabitants can be mirror atoms and even mirror planets and stars (but not mirror versions of us, alas). Together, these hypothetical particles can form a whole shadow world, as real as ours, but almost completely cut off from us.

If in the future we can detect at least one mirror neutrino, this will prove that the visible universe is only half of what exists, and the known laws of physics are half of a much broader set of rules,” the researchers told NBC News.

mirror universe

Today, the theory of the mirror universe attractsattention of scientists because of its ability to explain the reasons for its accelerating expansion. This simple and elegant solution also explains the observed discrepancy between matter and antimatter (more on that later) and could end the crisis in cosmology.

Since cosmology covers the entire universe from birth to death, concepts such as dark matter, dark energy and the Multiverse are seriously considered by respected scientists.

Hubble constant is the number that cosmologists use to measure the expansion of the universe. The constant got its name in honor of the astronomer Edwin Hubble, who first measured it in 1929.

To understand whether the mirror theory is correct, physicistsfrom the University of New Mexico and the University of California created several mathematical models that matched the observed rate of expansion of the universe. The results obtained in the course of the work showed that only one model does not violate the laws of physics and explains the inconsistencies in the Hubble constant. And this -mirror universe model.

Note that from a mathematical point of view, thisthe concept is a solution to a long-observed problem. As the authors of the paper, published in the journal Physics Review Letters, explain, further model building can reveal many of the secrets of the universe.

Do you know how many types of the Multiverse exist and which one we are in? The answer is here, don't miss it!

universe of antimatter

Now let's look at another solution.cosmological and physical problems - the concept of antimatter. It is believed that it explains the reason for the existence of matter, which should not be in our Universe. The basic idea is that every particle has a pair, so matter in our universe has an antimatter counterpart (to put it simply).

Our Universe may have a mirror twin, the Anti-Universe.

Although this idea has long been lostpopularity (for various reasons), physicists see the anti-universe as a possible solution to a range of problems, including the Hubble constant. What unites all these theories is the assumption that observable space and time are not the only reality.

Do you want to always be aware of news from the world of popular science and technology? Subscribe to our channel in Telegram, so you definitely won't miss anything interesting!

So many universes

Since to prove the existence of a mirroruniverse or the multiverse, scientists are not able to, this area of ​​research belongs to theoretical physics. So, in 1957, physicist Hugh Everett proposed one of the most popular theories today - the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, which predicts the existence of branching timelines or alternative realities.

Everett's interpretation is also mathematicallydescribes the behavior of matter, which I talked about earlier, and is one of the most accepted theories of alternative universes. Everett's approach is based on the inflationary model of the universe, which can explain many observable properties.

Today we see only a small part of the universe

At first, the theory was perceived as scientificscience fiction, but over time it was able to explain many features of our world and people began to take it seriously, says Linde. By the way, if you want to learn more about the Multiverse and its scientific component, you are here (we tried :)

So, what conclusions can be drawn about the mirror universe and an infinite number of worlds? Alas, today all existing theories are unprovable. This means we need new, bettertheories to explain the properties of the observable universe. But even if the truth remains forever a mystery, at least we have imagination, science, and countless probabilities to think about. Do you agree?