Dr Blake said their results support the idea that dark energy is the ”cosmological constant” – a repulsive force Albert Einstein proposed almost a century ago to explain why the universe did not collapse on itself.

The famous scientist later dismissed the idea as ”his greatest blunder”. But he was right after all, Dr Blake said. ”Einstein remains untoppled.”

Dark energy will continue to push galaxies ever faster away until they fade completely from view. It might also result in a ”Big Rip”, as matter is torn apart, atom by atom, Dr Blake said.