NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has generated the most detailed and highest-resolution map of dark matter to date, leveraging data collected during recent investigations.
The map illustrates how the invisible, mysterious substance overlaps and intertwines with “ordinary” matter – the material that makes up stars, galaxies, and everything visible.
Published in the journal Nature Astronomy, the map builds upon previous research, providing additional confirmation and new details about how dark matter has shaped the universe. Understanding dark matter is crucial for astronomers seeking to understand the universe’s structure and evolution.
“This is the largest map of dark matter we’ve created with Webb, and it’s twice as sharp as any other dark matter map made by other observatories,” highlighted Diana Scognamiglio, lead author of the paper and an astrophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
Dark matter doesn’t emit, reflect, or absorb light, passing through ordinary matter like a “ghost,” but it does interact with the universe through gravity – a phenomenon the map now showcases with unprecedented clarity.
“Previously, we were seeing a blurry image of dark matter. Now, thanks to Webb’s incredible resolution, we can observe the invisible structure of the universe with impressive detail,” Scognamiglio emphasized.
The map reveals that the interaction is rooted in the degree of overlap between dark matter and ordinary matter.
This scientific milestone was achieved through a 255-hour observation with the James Webb Space Telescope, identifying nearly 800,000 galaxies, some of which were detected for the first time.
¿Por qué es importante observar la materia oscura?
Dark matter determined the large-scale distribution of galaxies in the universe, and its influence contributed to creating the conditions for the subsequent formation of planets.
“this map provides stronger evidence that without dark matter, we might not have the elements in our galaxy that allowed life to emerge,” NASA scientists concluded.
