Rutgers Scientists have uncovered unique “fingerprints” that reveal how these cosmic systems expand and evolve.
A group of scientists led by Rutgers University has found new evidence about how galaxies grow, using clues hidden in the universe’s unseen framework shaped by dark matter.
A special type of galaxy. By tracking how these galaxies clustered over billions of years, the researchers gained fresh insight into how galaxies are connected to surrounding dark matter and how they change as the universe ages.
“Analyzing these fingerprints gives us insight into the mass of dark matter surrounding the galaxies,” said Eric Gawiser, a Distinguished Professor with the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences and an author of the study.
“The dark matter masses revealed by this study are consistent with the idea that Lyman-alpha emitting galaxies evolved into present-day galaxies like our own Milky Way.”
The team’s work examined wide-field images from three separate stages of the universe’s history, not long after the Big Bang. What they discovered were clear, fingerprint-like patterns that revealed where dark matter is most heavily concentrated.
The Invisible Glue of the Cosmos
Dark matter, a mysterious substance that doesn’t emit light or energy, cannot be seen, but makes up most of the matter in the universe, according to scientists. They know dark matter exists because its gravity affects how galaxies move and how these vast cosmic systems are arranged in space.
