singularity | has definition Location where the fabric of space or spacetime suffers a devastating rupture. | ![has source: Greene, B. 1999 The Elegant Universe, W.W. Norton and Co., New York, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 has source: Greene, B. 1999 The Elegant Universe, W.W. Norton and Co., New York, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
has definition Anomaly in space-time at which a state not in accord with the classical laws of physics obtains. An example is a black hole; another is the moment of the big bang. | ![has source: Abbot, D. 1984 Astronomers, Peter Bedrick Books, New York, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 has source: Abbot, D. 1984 Astronomers, Peter Bedrick Books, New York, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
has definition A point of infinite curvature of space where the equations of general relativity break down. A black hole represents a singularity; so, perhaps, did the universe at the first moment of time. | ![has source: Ferris, T. 1988 Coming of Age in the Milky Way, Morrow, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 has source: Ferris, T. 1988 Coming of Age in the Milky Way, Morrow, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
has definition A place, either in space or in time at which some quantity, such as density, becomes infinite. The laws of physics cannot describe infinite quantities and, in fact, physicists believe that infinities do not exist in nature. All singularities, such as the Schwarzschild singularity, are therefore probably the artifacts of inadequate theories rather than real properties of nature. According to Einstein's theory of general relativity, the universe began in a singularity of infinite density, the big bang. Physicists believe that an improved and yet-to-be discovered modification of general relativity, incorporating quantum mechanics, will show that the universe did not begin as a singularity. (See Schwarzschild singularity.) | ![has source: Lightman, A., Brawer, R. 1990 The Lives and Worlds of Modern Cosmologists, Harvard University Press, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 has source: Lightman, A., Brawer, R. 1990 The Lives and Worlds of Modern Cosmologists, Harvard University Press, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
has definition A point in space-time at which the space-time curvature and other physical quantities become infinite and the laws of physics break down. | ![has source: Coughlan, G.D., Dodd, J.E. 1999 The Ideas of Particle Physics, Cambridge University Press, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 has source: Coughlan, G.D., Dodd, J.E. 1999 The Ideas of Particle Physics, Cambridge University Press, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
has definition If the standard big bang theory is extrapolated all the way back to time zero, one reaches an instant of infinite density, infinite pressure, and infinite temperature - an instant that is frequently called the initial singularity. This singularity is sometimes said to mark the beginning of time, but it is more realistic to recognize that an extrapolation to infinite density cannot be trusted. | ![has source: Guth, A.H. 1997 The Inflationary Universe, Addison-Wesley, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 has source: Guth, A.H. 1997 The Inflationary Universe, Addison-Wesley, 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
is a kind of theoretical celestial body | ![2001-09-27 09:30:08.0 2001-09-27 09:30:08.0](facet.gif) |
physical object | has location or center of gravity | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has angular momentum | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has mass | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has velocity | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has momentum | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has temperature | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has volume | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has extent | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |
has material | ![2001-09-27 09:27:27.0 2001-09-27 09:27:27.0](facet.gif) |