The majority of the findings of a group of scientists are consistent with the best-accepted existing theory of the present-day universe. But there are some minor differences that may indicate that something is missing in this perception.
A large international team of scientists has come up with the most accurate map ever of how all matter is distributed across the universe, over a 13.8 billion-year-old period. The resulting map will be an invaluable reference for scientists looking to understand how the universe evolved from the Big Bang to the present.
How did the researchers map the universe?
To make this precise map, the researchers compared data they collected from two major telescope surveys, the Dark Energy Survey in Chile, and the South Pole Telescope, which collects data on the cosmic microwave background, which are traces of solar radiation. Faint residual radiation from what is known as the Big Bang.
Reliance on the results of the two cosmic telescopes gives the results of the study conducted by scientists great credibility in its quality and accuracy, says astrophysicist Chihuai Zhang of the University of “Chicago”, who is the lead author of one of the three research papers describing the work.
And the physicist says, “By cross-comparing the two sets of data taken by two different tools, researchers can have more confidence in their results,” referring to the study in which more than 150 researchers from the University of Chicago and the Fermi National Accelerator laboratory participated. laboratory).
According to the British newspaper “The Independent”, this study revealed where the universe retains all its matter, not only the ordinary matter that makes up planets, stars, dust, black holes and galaxies, but also the invisible dark matter, which represents 75% of the matter in the universe, It is the mysterious invisible mass that generates more gravity than ordinary matter.
According to the series of research papers describing the work, published in the journal Physical Review D, the researchers found that their map mostly matches current models, but with some slight differences, as the new readings indicate that the universe is less lumpy, And that it collects in certain areas instead of spreading evenly.
The researchers say that if other studies continue to reach similar results, this may mean that there is something missing in our current perception of the universe.
dark matter in the universe
And the “Science Alert” website states that, according to the current models of the formation of the universe, when the Big Bang occurred, all matter in the universe was condensed into a single point of infinite density and intense heat that suddenly exploded, and then the matter rushed outward, forming Gradually planets, stars and galaxies. By carefully mapping this matter today, scientists can try to understand the forces that shaped the evolution of the universe.
Also, by tracing the path of this primordial matter as it spread outward and looking at how it is distributed today, scientists can go back in time to learn how matter got to where it is in the universe today.
Scientists figuring out how these early atoms diffused, cooled, and clump together to form stars, rocks, and dust is an investigative work that requires an enormous amount of astronomical data.
One of the difficulties that scientists faced is that they cannot see all the matter in the universe, as most of it, or about 75% of it, is completely invisible matter, and it cannot be detected according to the detection methods currently available.
Scientists have discovered the existence of dark matter indirectly, since it creates gravitational fields that are too strong for the amount of normal matter. This is manifested in phenomena such as galaxies spinning too fast, and what is called “gravitational lensing”.
gravitational lens
And it can be explained what the “gravitational lens” does, when something in the universe has enough mass, the gravitational field around it becomes strong enough to affect the curvature of what is known as “space-time” itself.
This means that any light that travels through that region of space does so via a curved path, resulting in distorted and amplified light. These lenses are also stronger than they should be if they were created only by ordinary matter.
According to the “Space” website, both surveys that were used in the study use this “gravitational lens” technique to detect dark matter in the universe, while gravitational lenses are good for tracking the ordinary, everyday matter that stars and planets are made of, these The technique is also good at tracking dark matter, as its existence can be inferred through gravitational lensing because it interacts with gravity while it cannot be seen because it does not interact with light.
By analyzing the two sets of data from the two surveys, scientists can infer where all the matter in the universe ended up. The majority of the findings of the scientists in this study are consistent with the current best accepted theory of the universe model. But there are some minor differences that may indicate that something is missing in the current perception of the universe.
Although the results of this study have not yet reached the statistical level that scientists consider certain, it yielded useful and remarkable information from two completely different telescopic surveys.