The universe may accidently be paying tribute to “The Simpsons” with its shape.
The idea that the universe is finite and relatively small rather than infinitely large first became popular in 2003 when cosmologists noticed unexpected patterns in the cosmic microwave background- radiation residue left from the Big Bang.
An infinite universe should contain CMB waves of all sizes but cosmologists found that longer wavelengths were missing from measurements made by NASA’s Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe.
This meant that the universe could be finite. When cosmologists set out to determine the shape of this finite universe, it was suggested that the universe could be doughnut shaped.
While the doughnut is a likely candidate, there are some other possibilities (e.g. the universe may be shaped like a football).