Scientists at the University of Portsmouth have proposed that primordial black holes survived the contraction of the universe and persist today as so-called cosmic fossils, reports infohub.kz.
According to research by Professor Enrico Gastanaga from the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation, the universe may not have originated from a single explosion. The researchers considered a "cosmic bounce" model, in which a previous universe contracted before expanding again. During this process, quantum effects created pressure that halted the contraction and prevented the formation of infinite density.
Calculations showed that objects larger than 90 meters could pass through the transition phase. Such relic black holes could explain the nature of dark matter, which constitutes most of the universe's mass, and also answer why supermassive objects appeared early in the universe's evolution. Astrophysicists plan to test the theory by analyzing gravitational waves and cosmic microwave background radiation.