General relativity describes how spacetime is curved and bent by mass and energy (gravity).

The topology or geometry of the universe includes both local geometry in the observable

universe and global geometry. Cosmologists often work with a given space-like slice of spacetime
called the comoving coordinates. The section of spacetime which can be observed is the
backward light cone, which delimits the cosmological horizon. The cosmological horizon (also called
the particle horizon or the light horizon) is the maximum distance from which particles can have
traveled to the observer in the age of the universe. This horizon represents the boundary between
the observable and the unobservable regions of the universe. [72][73] The existence, properties, and
significance of a cosmological horizon depend on the particular cosmological model.
An important parameter determining the future evolution of the universe theory is the density
parameter, Omega (Ω), defined as the average matter density of the universe divided by a critical
value of that density. This selects one of three possible geometries depending on whether Ω is equal
to, less than, or greater than 1. These are called, respectively, the flat, open and closed universes. [74]
Observations, including the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE), Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy
Probe (WMAP), and Planck maps of the CMB, suggest that the universe is infinite in extent with a
finite age, as described by the Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker (FLRW) models.[75][69][76]
[77]
 These FLRW models thus support inflationary models and the standard model of cosmology,
describing a flat, homogeneous universe presently dominated by dark matter and dark energy.[78][79]