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The Iconoclast: Absolute Hot

Most people reading this are familiar with the concept of absolute zero: Zero degrees Kelvin        ( -273 degrees Celsius) is the coldest temperature possible, and at this temperature matter is not moving at all. In reality, absolute zero can never be actually achieved, and even if it could the matter would still be moving slightly. So much for high school chemistry. But I digress, as absolute zero is not the point of this article…

The point of this article is that there may be an “opposite” to absolute zero. Appropriately, it is called “absolute hot”, and represents the highest attainable temperature a hunk of matter can reach. Absolute hot is estimated to be reached at 1.41678571 × 10³²  degrees Kelvin. This temperature is known as the Planck temperature, and the laws of physics are said to breakdown once one reaches this point. Specifically, the four fundamental forces of nature (gravity, electromagnetism, the weak force, and the strong force) are said to unify into a single force, and weird things happen to space and time.

For more information and a more research perspective on this, see: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/zero/hot.html

Brad Rybinski