The Darkness of Dark Matter

Oops: Objects Out of Place, The Unexplained and the Unexplainable

- Gunreet Marwah
- PRN: 21060322059

Atoms, stars, planets, trees, rocks, and humanity make up less than 5% of the known cosmos. The rest
is still somewhat of a mystery. And it's a dark one, quite literally.
Our species has been studying the night sky for thousands of years, wondering if there is anything else
out there. The 400th anniversary of Galileo's yes answer was commemorated more than a decade ago. 
Galileo used a new device, the telescope, to look up into the sky and observe things that no one else
had seen before: hundreds of stars, mountains on the Moon, and Jupiter's satellites. Since then, we've
discovered over 400 planets orbiting other stars, 100 billion stars in our galaxy, hundreds of billions
of galaxies beyond our own, and even the weak radiation of the Big Bang's echo. But what we still
haven't possibly found the answer to is: What exists between these billions of stars and millions of
planets and galaxies?
When we look up at the night sky, we see millions of stars. Planets in our solar system, stars in our
galaxy, and entire galaxies far, far away are among these radiant celestial bodies. All of the light-
emitting matter in the cosmos is made up of these things. We may observe these bodies through the
light they emit using various types of telescopes. Light from millions of light-years away can be
detected by some telescopes. In fact, the Hubble Space Telescope, which you may have heard of, can
view more than 13.4 billion light-years distant. However, there is mass in the universe that does not
emit light in any part of the electromagnetic spectrum, rendering it opaque to our telescopes.
Scientists call this type of matter "Dark Matter" because of its exceptional properties.
The magnificent spiral galaxies, such as our own Milky Way, revolve far faster than predicted, thanks
to an additional gravitational pull of invisible "dark matter," which is now known as one of the most
important scientific discoveries of the 20th century. Since its discovery 40 years ago, we've learnt that
this mystery material, which is most likely an exotic elementary particle, accounts for around 85 per
cent of the mass in the Universe, leaving only 15% to be a regular matter. Despite the fact that dark
matter is crucial to our knowledge of how galaxies develop and evolve – and is ultimately one of the
causes for life on Earth – we know very little about it. Dark matter has yet to be directly observed by
scientists. Because dark matter does not interact with baryonic matter and is entirely invisible to light
and other types of electromagnetic radiation, it is difficult to detect with present technology. However,
astronomers are confident that it exists because of the gravitational impact it appears to have on
galaxies and galaxy clusters. According to traditional physics, for example, stars at the galactic centre,
where visible stuff is concentrated, should travel far slower than those towards the galaxy's borders.
On the other hand, observations demonstrate that star’s circle at about the same speed independent of
their location in the galactic disc. This perplexing finding makes sense if the border stars feel the
gravitational effects of an invisible mass—dark matter—in a ring surrounding the galaxy.
 A Swiss astronomer named Fritz Zwicky was one of the first to
identify the presence of dark matter in 1933. The light emitted by
the more than 1,000 galaxies that make up the Coma Cluster of
galaxies was investigated by Zwicky. Zwicky used two approaches
to calculate the mass of the Coma Cluster. One approach included
detecting changes in the light emitted by galaxies to measure their
velocities. The overall brightness of the cluster was used in the
second calculation procedure to calculate mass. When he compared
the two mass estimates, he discovered that the galaxy velocity
measurement suggested that the Coma Cluster had a much greater
mass than the brightness estimate projected. A similar pattern was
recorded from the Virgo cluster of galaxies not long after. However,
measurement techniques at the time were not as accurate as they are
now, and the contentious nature of the result—that the Universe is
dominated by some unknown dark matter—led scientists to dismiss
the concept until over 50 years later.
A study of the Bullet Cluster, which is the name given to two galaxies that recently collided, provides
the third area of evidence confirming the presence of dark matter. Using the gravitational lensing
technique, astronomers have discovered a means to determine the mass of a celestial object, such as a
galaxy. The concept of gravitational lensing is based on the notion that an object's mass affects the
density of space around it. Light bends as it passes
through this thick environment. Consider a flat
stretched sheet to illustrate this point. When no
masses are present, the sheet symbolises space.
Imagine a bowling ball being placed on the sheet.
We know that the bowling ball will pull the sheet
down. The sheet would be curved by the ball in
the same way that masses curve space-time. When
light passes close to an object in space, it travels
over a curved surface, bending the light waves.
The greater the object's bulk, the more light bends.
To address the dark matter conundrum, scientists
have offered a variety of ideas. According to some
physicists, dark matter is just ordinary stuff
concentrated in difficult-to-detect objects like
massive planets or black holes. However, scientific evidence suggests that this idea is implausible.
So, what exactly is dark matter comprised of? Neutrinos, a sort of particle that makes up dark matter,
have previously been found by scientists. Neutrinos, like dark matter, are particles that do not emit
light. On the other hand, Neutrinos can only make up a fraction of the overall mass of dark matter
because they are too light and moved too rapidly when they were produced in the initial era. As a
result, other particles that are yet to be found must be involved. 
Dark energy might be a feature of space, according to one theory. Albert Einstein was the first to
discover that nothing is empty space. Many of the features of space are yet unknown. Einstein's initial
discovery was that additional space could be created. Then, according to one form of Einstein's
gravity theory, which includes a cosmological constant, a second prediction is made: "empty space"
can and/or generate its own energy. This energy would not be diminished as space expands since it is
a characteristic of space itself. More of this energy of space would emerge when more space is
created.
Is dark matter forever stable, or will it all disintegrate at some point in the future?
We know that dark matter must have existed in a 5-to-1 ratio with the regular matter when the
Universe was only a few thousand years old because of the peaks and troughs in the cosmic
microwave background's irregularities. We know the dark matter-to-normal matter ratio hasn't altered
by any significant amount over the past
13.8 billion years because of
measurements of large-scale structures
and galaxies' cores.
Dark matter, on the other hand, may
disintegrate over timeframes longer than
the universe's existence, and we'd have no
way of knowing. A few hundred billion
years or more is still possible, meaning
that we may be swimming in the deep end
in the far future. After all, dark matter has
a longevity of a few hundred billion years
or longer, so it's very conceivable that it will dissolve into conventional matter, antimatter, and/or
radiation in the far future, maybe even while the stars are still burning brightly. This will remain a
mystery until we learn more about its characteristics.
This is another instance in which we have no choice but to work within our limitations.
So now that everyone knows that around 25% of the Universe is dark matter, and 70% of it is dark
energy, both of which are invisible. This is a little weird since it implies that what we experience is
merely a tiny part of reality. We don't know what dark matter and energy are or how they function.
However, some scientists now believe that dark matter grows at the margins of black holes and other
astronomical objects. All galaxies, especially hyper diffuse galaxies, can exist only if dark matter
holds them together. However, a team of researchers discovered that the motions of the gas in
AGC114905 can be explained by ordinary matter using the standard method of detecting dark matter,
which involves measuring the distance of the gas from the galaxy's centre on the X-axis and the
rotation speed of the gas on the Y-axis. However, there is a difficulty with the hypothesis that dark
matter must exist in galaxy AGC114905, but measurements demonstrate that it does not. However,
there are a few possibilities for why there isn't any dark matter. Another case is that another massive
neighbouring galaxy drained the galaxy of its dark matter. The problem is that there are no galaxies in
the area. Another assumption is that seeing the Universe from an estimated angle may cause
miscalculations.
Although this might signal the end of the
dark matter idea, there have been some
recent theories that could demonstrate
otherwise. The search for gravitational
waves and ripples in space-time caused by
great cosmic cataclysms might help settle
the Universe's biggest mysteries: whether
or not boson clouds are dark matter.
Researchers are currently detecting gravity
waves up to billions of light-years away
with massive detectors like the Laser
Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory, the upgraded Virgo detector, and the Kamioka
gravitational wave detector.
Boson clouds are lightweight subatomic particles that are nearly undetectable and have been proposed
as a possible source of dark matter. Researchers will seek gravitational waves created by boson clouds
orbiting fast-spinning black holes in these particles, which exist, have incredibly tiny masses, and
seldom interact with other matter, which is one of the significant traits dark matter appears to possess.
We might be able to hunt down the elusive boson particle and decode the code of dark matter by
looking for these clouds.
What role does dark energy play in all of this? It took until 1998 for it to be found. Observations
revealed that the cosmos was expanding not just in size but also at a faster rate than previously
thought. All mass that we can see, including planets, stars, and the entire galaxy, should be drawn into
our Universe rather than pushing it out. In fact, astronomers were taken aback by the fast expansion of
the cosmos. The astrophysicists then developed the concept of dark energy to explain the Universe's
unusual behaviour. The negative pressure inflating the cosmos like a balloon causes it to interact with
very little gravity.
The dark matter and dark energy puzzles are crucial to a deeper understanding of the Universe's
evolution. According to studies, dark matter and dark energy have profoundly influenced the structure
and evolution of the cosmos.
There is already a theory about how dark energy influences the Universe's expansion, but aside from
the fact that it makes up roughly 68 per cent of the universe, very little is known about it.
Perhaps we're on the verge of discovering an experimental hint to the nature of dark matter. However,
all we'll accomplish may be imposing limitations on what we can measure, such as event rates,
scattering cross-sections, and probable particle characteristics and couplings. We have no way of
knowing if the tests we're conducting right
now are even capable of exposing the nature of
dark matter, whatever that nature may be.
Despite this, we now have conclusive proof
that dark matter exists and a vast amount of
knowledge on what it is, how it acts, and what
it cannot be, thanks to astrophysical evidence.
One point stands out above all others in our
attempt to comprehend our Universe: we must
be intellectually meticulous and honest about
what we know, what we don't know, and what
is unknown.

“If you find galaxies, some of which have a lot of dark matter and some of which have a little dark
matter, you can’t explain it with the loss of gravity unless you’re willing to say that one part of the
universe has a different law of gravity than another part, which is just silly. The entire point of
physics is to find unified laws that are always there. This is why it is an argument for the existence of
dark matter.” (Slosar. A.)
Many have attempted to explain dark matter, but the fact is that it is impossible (as of yet). It is
challenging to locate because dark matter cannot be detected. When we consider the chronology of
our universe, we can see that galaxies would struggle to develop without this stuff. For anything to
operate in the cosmos, dark matter is required. Galaxies would disintegrate if it didn't exist.
Dark matter is a subject about which we may know nothing. And we may learn more about what it
isn't than we do about what it is. We do know, however, that it is imperceptible. It does also, however,
have mass, and clouds made of it would have a significant amount of mass. We also know it's huge
and has an effect on galaxies' gravity. It is, however, undetectable to the human sight as well as any
modern equipment. It also has no relationship with light or the electromagnetic force. What is crucial
is that dark matter may be a highly perplexing issue. We just see three things: there is obviously
something there, it has a significant gravitational influence, and there is a lot of it.

Citation

1. Nast, C. and Oberhaus, D., 2019. Two Unusual Galaxies Shake Up the Dark Matter Debate,
Again. [online] Wired. Available at: https://www.wired.com/story/astronomers-have-
found-two-galaxies-with-no-dark-matter

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