On the general behaviour of the universe near the cosmological singularity

Abstract

In this paper we discuss dynamical features characterizing the oscillatory regime near a spacelike singularity in a generic inhomogeneous cosmological model, the effect of which leads to a profound modification of the asymptotic behaviour toward that singularity, and creates conditions under which the system can evolve into a qualitatively turbulent regime. The well known pointwise `chaotic' behaviour of the evolution of the gravitational field toward such a singularity is shown to lead to a similarly complicated spatial structure on the spacelike slices which approach it.