I'm not sure I'm understanding this correctly, but I recently read that the repulsive force of dark energy is responsible for the creation of new space as the universe expands - and since empty space has energy, does this mean that:
A) the energy of the universe is increasing along with the creation of new space? B) the universe is therefore not an isolated system?
A) Yes it is true that the energy is increasing over time. B) If you're referring to the 1st Law of Thermodynamics (Conservation of Energy), the universe as a whole does not obey conservation of energy. The science of Thermodynamics takes CoE as a postulate that is assumed, and makes no attempt to derive it that I'm aware of. But it can be shown that CoE follows from time translation symmetry, which is not true for the cosmos globally.
