A new map of dark matter in the local universe reveals several previously undiscovered filamentary structures connecting galaxies. The map could enable studies about the nature of dark matter as well as about the history and future of our local universe. A new map of dark matter in the local universe reveals several previously undiscovered filamentary structures connecting
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IMAGE: An international team of researchers has produced a map of the dark matter within the local universe, using a model to infer its location due to its gravitational influence on. view more
Credit: Hong et. al., Astrophysical Journal
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. A new map of dark matter in the local universe reveals several previously undiscovered filamentary structures connecting galaxies. The map, developed using machine learning by an international team including a Penn State astrophysicist, could enable studies about the nature of dark matter as well as about the history and future of our local universe.
Dark matter is an elusive substance that makes up 80% of the universe. It also provides the skeleton for what cosmologists call the cosmic web, the large-scale structure of the universe that, due to its gravitational influence, dictates the motion of galaxies and other cosmic material. However, the distribution of local dark matter is currently unknown becau