Board Thread:Planning/@comment-4844180-20130721230302/@comment-5135903-20130729130426

I see. Remember: the expansion of the universe is not just between clusters and galaxies but also on much smaller scales (just to a much lesser degree; the current expansion of the universe is a rate of about 2.17x10^-18(m/s)/m; meaning each year a light-year will become longer by 648.32 kilometres, and each metre will become longer by 68.48 picometres). Even stopping heat death (Big Freeze) will not prevent dark energy from eventually pulling the universe apart down to a subatomic level (Big Rip). As you suggested, preventing the Big Freeze would only delay the 'end of the universe'.