In a nut-shell, a singularity is a theoretically infinite curvature of space-time, but it cannot "suck" the whole universe into itself because it does not have infinite mass, only the mass of the collapsed star that formed it, and whatever else may have fallen in since. Since the tidal force of gravity decreases proportionately with the square of the distance from the center of the mass, it doesn't matter what size (density) the mass is. Therefore if you weren't going to fall into the star that formed the singularity, you aren't going to fall into the singularity, either. That light cannot escape has to do with the extreme curvature of space-time inside the event horizon (or apparent horizon), but outside of the horizon, that curvature becomes less and less, as with all other gravitational fields (space-time curvature is just another way of conceptualizing a gravitational field, like the balls on a sheet of rubber, once the angle gets steep enough even light-speed isn't enough to maintain orbit, but any angle less than that, and it's still possible to escape). A quick answer would be that if the Sun were to implode and form a singularity (don't worry, it's too small to do that), what would happen to Earth's orbit? Nothing. We would feel the same tidal force as now because the Sun would still have the same mass, and we are still the same distance from the center of that mass. The Earth's orbital speed will not have changed, and the only difference is that we'd have to pay a lot more at the tanning booths and grocery stores. The universe would not be racing in at infinite speed, because the total mass, and therefore the total gravitational force, has not changed. When a star (or any other matter) implodes, its density (size) changes, but not its mass. To put this in perspective, suppose you had a ton of feathers, and you ran them through a trash compactor until they all fit into a 1 inch cube. It still weighs a ton. The matter's change in density did not change its mass. Do you suppose by squeezing it a little more you can make it heavier, or increase its mass? Of course not. And since gravity is dependent on mass, you have not changed the total gravitational field, neither. So it is with sigularities, just taken to the extreme. Because a singularity forms does not mean the universe will suddenly experience a cataclysmic demise. It means that space-time has become so curved in that area that light-speed is insufficient velocity to escape, so any matter slower than that spirals in, increasing density even more, which curves space-time more, so, well you get the idea. But it is a local phenomenon. The further you get from the center of mass, the less curvature there is, and outside the area of critical curvature (the angle that light can escape from), the curvature is the same as that of the original mass. And since, as I mentioned before, space-time curvature is just another way of explaining gravitational fields and tidal forces (and a very good way), the gravity outside the apparent (or event) horizon hasn't changed, neither.

: Quick question. A quantium singularity has infinite density, right, and due to that fact it must have infinite mass unless it has a volume of zero, and if it has infinite mass then everything would be attracted to it at an infinite speed. So the whole universe would not exsist the instant a singularity is formed so.

: If you have any knowlage about this please leave a response here.

: Thanks for reading.

• Re: Quatium Singularities - Mike Hollis - December 30, 1997 - 15:18 UTC