For many years, wormholes have captured the imagination of scientists and science fiction fans. They are often shown as magical tunnels through space that can connect two faraway places in the universe. If wormholes really exist, they could one day make it possible to travel huge distances in a very short time.
But there is one big problem—no one has ever found a real wormhole. They remain only theoretical objects predicted by the mathematics of Einstein's theory of general relativity. Even though they have never been observed, physicists continue studying them because they help us understand the limits of gravity and spacetime.
Now, researchers Ditta and Channuie have proposed a new model of a time-dependent traversable wormhole. Unlike many earlier models, their wormhole is not completely still. Instead, it changes with time because energy flows through it. As this flow slowly fades away, the wormhole naturally becomes stable. Their study offers a new and simple way to understand how wormholes might evolve in the real universe.
What Is a Wormhole?
A wormhole is a hypothetical tunnel in spacetime. Imagine folding a sheet of paper so that two distant points touch each other. Instead of traveling across the whole sheet, you could simply pass through the shortcut.
Scientists believe a wormhole could work in a similar way. Instead of traveling millions or even billions of light-years through normal space, a spacecraft could theoretically enter one side of a wormhole and come out somewhere else almost instantly.
This idea comes from Einstein's theory of general relativity, which explains gravity as the bending of spacetime. According to the equations of this theory, wormholes are mathematically possible under certain special conditions.
However, this does not mean they actually exist in nature.
A Traversable Wormhole
There are many different types of theoretical wormholes. Some would collapse almost immediately after forming, making travel impossible.
The researchers focused on a traversable wormhole, which means it stays open long enough for something to pass through safely.
To make this possible, the wormhole must remain stable and its narrow middle section, called the throat, must not collapse under its own gravity.
Keeping a wormhole open is one of the biggest challenges in wormhole physics.
Most Wormholes Never Change
Many previous studies assumed that wormholes stay exactly the same forever. These are known as static wormholes.
While static models are easier to study, our universe is constantly changing. Stars explode, galaxies move, black holes grow, and the universe itself evolves over time.
Because nature is always changing, scientists want to understand what happens if a wormhole also changes with time.
This is exactly what the new research explores.
A Wormhole That Evolves
Instead of keeping the wormhole fixed, the researchers allowed one important part of its structure, called the shape function, to change over time.
You can think of the shape function as something that controls the wormhole's overall structure.
As this function changes, the wormhole itself slowly changes too.
This creates what scientists call a time-dependent wormhole, meaning its geometry evolves instead of remaining frozen forever.
This approach makes the model more realistic because real physical systems rarely stay exactly the same forever.
Energy Flow Is the Driving Force
One of the most interesting ideas in the new study is that the wormhole changes because of a flow of energy.
The researchers describe this as a radial energy flux, meaning energy moves through the wormhole from one direction to another.
According to Einstein's equations, this flow of energy naturally changes the shape of spacetime.
In simple words, the energy acts like a fuel that drives the wormhole's evolution.
Instead of changing because the entire universe expands, the wormhole changes because energy is passing through it.
This gives scientists a new way to describe evolving wormholes.
The Wormhole Slowly Becomes Stable
The researchers found exact mathematical solutions showing how the wormhole changes over time.
Their model has two main parts.
The first part is a permanent background that never changes.
The second part is temporary. It slowly becomes weaker as time passes.
Because the temporary part fades away, the wormhole gradually settles into a stable shape.
This means the wormhole starts as an active, changing object but eventually becomes almost completely static.
Many systems in nature behave in a similar way. For example, when you drop a stone into a pond, the ripples slowly disappear until the water becomes calm again.
The wormhole behaves in much the same way.
Does the Wormhole Meet the Rules?
Scientists cannot simply invent any mathematical object and call it a wormhole.
Several important conditions must be satisfied.
The new model successfully passes these tests.
First, it has a clear throat, which is the narrow region connecting two different areas of spacetime.
Second, it satisfies the flaring-out condition. This is an important mathematical requirement that prevents the throat from collapsing inward.
Finally, the wormhole is asymptotically flat. This means that if you move far enough away from it, space looks almost normal again.
Because it satisfies these conditions, the model behaves like a proper traversable wormhole according to general relativity.
The Need for Exotic Matter
Although the new model is promising, it still faces one major challenge.
Like almost every traversable wormhole model, it requires something called exotic matter.
Ordinary matter, such as planets, stars, gas, and dust, follows the normal rules of physics.
Exotic matter would behave very differently.
The researchers found that their wormhole violates something called the Null Energy Condition (NEC) near the throat.
This condition is normally obeyed by everyday matter.
Breaking it means the wormhole needs unusual forms of energy or matter that scientists have never directly observed.
This remains one of the biggest unanswered questions in wormhole research.
There Is Some Good News
Even though exotic matter is still required, the researchers found something encouraging.
As time passes, the amount of NEC violation becomes smaller.
In other words, the wormhole needs less extreme conditions as it evolves.
The scientists also calculated the total amount of exotic matter inside the wormhole using a mathematical method called a volume integral.
They found that this amount eventually reaches a steady value instead of growing forever.
This suggests the wormhole becomes more stable as it ages.
Testing Stability
The researchers also wanted to know whether the wormhole could survive small disturbances.
In physics, no object is perfectly isolated.
Tiny vibrations or disturbances are always present.
The team introduced small perturbations into their equations and studied how the wormhole responded.
They discovered that, for suitable choices of the model's parameters, these disturbances gradually disappeared over time.
This means the wormhole remains stable instead of becoming more unstable.
Stable solutions are much more useful because unstable wormholes would quickly collapse and disappear.
A Different Way to Study Wormholes
Many earlier studies explained evolving wormholes by assuming that the whole universe expands around them.
The new model takes a different approach.
Instead of using the expansion of the universe, the wormhole evolves because energy flows through it.
This makes the model simpler and may better represent certain physical situations.
The researchers also suggest that the energy flow could come from something called a null fluid, a theoretical form of matter made of particles moving at the speed of light.
Although this idea has not been proven, it offers one possible explanation for what could drive the wormhole's evolution.
Why This Research Is Important
Scientists have not discovered a real wormhole, and there is currently no evidence that traversable wormholes exist anywhere in the universe.
However, studies like this are still extremely valuable.
They help physicists test the limits of Einstein's theory and explore what kinds of strange objects might be mathematically possible.
This new research shows that a wormhole does not have to remain completely unchanged forever. Instead, it can naturally evolve because of energy flowing through it and slowly settle into a stable state.
The study also provides a fresh framework that could be useful for future research in general relativity and other advanced theories of gravity.
Although practical wormhole travel is still far beyond today's science, every new theoretical model brings scientists a little closer to understanding whether these mysterious tunnels could one day exist in our universe—or whether they will remain one of the greatest ideas in theoretical physics.
Reference: Allah Ditta, Phongpichit Channuie, "Transient Dynamical Wormholes with Decaying Radial Energy Flux", Arxiv, 2026. https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.04041
Technical Terms
1. Wormhole
A wormhole is a theoretical tunnel through space and time that connects two distant places in the universe. Instead of traveling the long way through space, you could theoretically take this shortcut.
2. Traversable Wormhole
A traversable wormhole is a wormhole that stays open long enough for a person, spacecraft, or even light to safely pass through it.
Most theoretical wormholes collapse instantly, but a traversable one remains stable.
3. General Relativity
General relativity is Albert Einstein's theory of gravity.
It says gravity is not an invisible force pulling objects together. Instead, massive objects like planets and stars bend the fabric of spacetime, and other objects move along those curves.
4. Spacetime
Spacetime is the combination of three dimensions of space and one dimension of time into a single four-dimensional structure.
Everything in the universe exists and moves through spacetime.
5. Time-Dependent Wormhole
A time-dependent wormhole is one that changes as time passes.
Instead of staying the same forever, its size or shape slowly evolves.
Think of it like a river that changes its path over time instead of remaining fixed.
6. Shape Function
The shape function is a mathematical formula that determines the shape and size of a wormhole.
It tells scientists how wide the tunnel is at different points.
In this research, the shape function changes with time, allowing the wormhole itself to evolve.
7. Geometry of Spacetime
Geometry simply means the shape of spacetime.
According to Einstein, matter and energy bend spacetime.
A wormhole is a very unusual shape of spacetime where two distant regions become connected.
8. Radial Energy Flux
A radial energy flux means energy flowing through the wormhole from one direction to another.
The word radial means along the radius—from the center outward or inward.
In this model, this energy flow causes the wormhole to change over time.
9. Einstein Field Equations
These are the main equations of general relativity.
They describe how matter and energy tell spacetime how to bend, and how curved spacetime affects the motion of matter.
These equations are the mathematical foundation behind black holes, gravitational waves, and wormholes.
10. Wormhole Throat
The throat is the narrowest part of the wormhole.
It connects the two entrances of the tunnel.
If the throat collapses, the wormhole closes and can no longer be crossed.
11. Flaring-Out Condition
This is a mathematical rule that ensures the throat opens outward instead of pinching shut.
Without this condition, gravity would immediately collapse the wormhole.
12. Asymptotic Flatness
This means that far away from the wormhole, space becomes normal again.
The strange effects of the wormhole are only noticeable near it.
13. Null Energy Condition (NEC)
The Null Energy Condition is a rule that ordinary matter always follows.
It says energy should behave in a normal, positive way.
Most traversable wormholes break this rule, meaning they require unusual forms of matter.
14. Exotic Matter
Exotic matter is hypothetical matter with very unusual properties.
Unlike normal matter, it can have negative energy density or create effects that push space outward instead of pulling it inward.
Scientists have never found enough exotic matter to build a wormhole.
15. Volume Integral
A volume integral is a mathematical method used to calculate the total amount of something inside a region.
In this research, it measures the total amount of exotic matter inside the wormhole.
16. Perturbation
A perturbation is a small disturbance or tiny change in a system.
Scientists use perturbations to test whether an object remains stable.
17. Stable Configuration
A stable configuration is a state where the wormhole keeps its shape even after small disturbances.
Stable wormholes are much more realistic than unstable ones.
18. Static Configuration
A static configuration means nothing changes with time.
The wormhole keeps the same shape and size forever unless something external affects it.
19. Cosmological Scale Factor
The cosmological scale factor is a number that describes how the universe expands over time.
As the universe expands, the distance between galaxies increases.
Some older wormhole models used this expansion to explain how wormholes evolve.
20. Null Fluid
A null fluid is a theoretical form of matter made of particles moving at the speed of light, such as radiation.
In this study, the researchers suggest that this type of energy flow could naturally drive the wormhole's evolution.
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