本集内容

Is the Universe running out of stars?

宇宙中的恒星正逐渐枯竭吗？

文字稿

（Source: Nasa）
The Universe could contain up to one septillion stars.

（信息来源：美国国家航空航天局）
宇宙中可能有多达一秭颗恒星。

But is it running out of new ones?

但宇宙中的新恒星是不是越来越少？

Stars are being born all the time in clouds of gas and dust all across the cosmos.

恒星不断地从气体和尘埃云中诞生，这一现象遍布宇宙各处。

（Source: Astronomy & Astrophysics, 2025 pre-print）
But new research looking at millions of galaxies has found that they seem to be cooling down.

（信息来源：《天文学和天体物理学》，2025 年预审）
但一项针对数百万个星系的研究发现这些气体和尘埃云正逐渐冷却。

It's a sign that they're making fewer and fewer new stars.

这个迹象表明它们生产的恒星越来越少。

（Source: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 2013）
In fact, it's been claimed that 95% of all stars that will ever exist have already been born.

（信息来源：《皇家天文学会月报》，2013）
其实，有研究称，所有的恒星中有 95% 的恒星都已经诞生了。

And since all stars will eventually die, is this the beginning of the end for the Universe?

又因为所有的恒星都终将死亡，这会是宇宙终结的前奏吗？

One of the leading theories for how the Universe will perish is called the Big Freeze.

解释宇宙如何走向终结的主流理论之一被称为 “大冻结”。

As the Universe keeps expanding and energy spreads out, stars move further and further apart, they run their course, and they aren't replaced with new ones.

随着宇宙的不断膨胀和能量的分散，恒星之间的距离越拉越远。它们会走完自己的生命周期，且不再有新恒星来取代它们。

But don't worry – this wouldn't be happening any time soon.

不过别担心，这并不会很快发生。

（Source: Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics, 2025）
One recent estimate put the final end at about one quinvigintillion years – that's one followed by seventy-eight zeros.

（信息来源：《宇宙学与粒子天体物理杂志》，2025）
最近的一项估计认为，宇宙的终结大约在 10^78 年之后，也就是数字 “1” 后面跟 78 个 “0” 那么久。

（Source: Nasa）
And the last star probably won't burn out for another one hundred trillion years.

（信息来源：美国国家航空航天局）
而最后一颗恒星恐怕也要再等一百万亿年才会熄灭。

So there's plenty of time for stargazing.

所以，我们还有充裕的时间来仰望星空。

重点词汇及表达

run out 枯竭

cosmos 宇宙

leading theory 主流理论

burn out 熄灭

stargazing 仰望星空，观星