- "Dark matter is a hypothetical form of matter thought to be the predominant type of matter in the universe."
Hypothetical matter that is believed to make up a significant portion of the universe, but does not emit, absorb, or reflect light or other forms of electromagnetic radiation.
The standard model of particle physics: The standard model is a theoretical framework that describes the fundamental particles and forces that make up the universe.
Particle detection: Dark matter cannot be directly observed, so the study of dark matter requires the use of indirect detection methods. Particle detection techniques include detectors that search for signatures of dark matter collisions.
Dark matter candidates: While the precise nature of dark matter is not yet known, there are a number of suggested particles that could be responsible for it. These include weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs), axions, and sterile neutrinos.
Dark matter simulations: Computer simulations can be used to model the behavior of dark matter on large scales, helping researchers test different theories and hypotheses.
The large Hadron collider: The LHC is the largest particle accelerator in the world, and is a crucial tool in the study of high-energy physics. Scientists use the LHC to study the properties of particles and to search for new particles or phenomena.
Galactic rotation curves: The rotation curves of galaxies provide evidence for the existence of dark matter. These curves show that stars in galaxies are moving at a speed that cannot be explained by the visible matter in galaxies alone.
Cosmic microwave background radiation: The study of the cosmic microwave background can provide information about the large-scale structure of the universe and the distribution of dark matter.
Gravitational lensing: The bending of light by large objects such as galaxy clusters can provide clues about the distribution of dark matter in the universe.
Dark energy: Dark energy is a mysterious force that is thought to be responsible for the accelerating expansion of the universe. While it is not directly related to dark matter, both phenomena are believed to play important roles in the evolution of the universe.
Astro-particle physics: Astro-particle physics is a field that combines astrophysics and particle physics to study the properties of the universe, including dark matter and dark energy.
Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs): Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) are hypothetical particles proposed to be a potential form of dark matter that have mass, interact weakly with normal matter, and are abundant in the universe.
Axions: Axions are hypothetical elementary particles that could help explain the existence of dark matter and solve the strong CP problem in particle physics.
Sterile neutrinos: Sterile neutrinos are hypothetical particles that do not interact through weak nuclear force but can potentially account for dark matter in the universe.
Gravitinos: Gravitinos are hypothetical particles predicted by supersymmetry theories that could potentially contribute to the composition of dark matter and are associated with the gravitational force.
- "It is called 'dark' because it does not appear to interact with the electromagnetic field, which means it does not absorb, reflect, or emit electromagnetic radiation and is, therefore, difficult to detect."
- "Its existence is implied by various astrophysical observations which cannot be explained by general relativity unless more matter is present than can be seen."
- "Evidence for dark matter comes from many different angles, such as galaxy dynamics and formation, gravitational lensing, and the cosmic microwave background, along with astronomical observations of the observable universe's current structure, the formation and evolution of galaxies, mass location during galactic collisions, and the motion of galaxies within galaxy clusters."
- "In the standard Lambda-CDM model of cosmology, the total mass–energy content of the universe contains 5% ordinary matter, 26.8% dark matter, and 68.2% of a form of energy known as dark energy."
- "Dark matter constitutes 85% of the total mass, while dark energy and dark matter constitute 95% of the total mass–energy content."
- "Its existence is not known to interact with ordinary baryonic matter and radiation except through gravity, making it difficult to detect in the laboratory."
- "The leading explanation is that dark matter is some as-yet-undiscovered subatomic particle, such as weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) or axions."
- "The other main possibility is that dark matter is composed of primordial black holes."
- "Many experiments to detect and study dark matter particles directly are being actively undertaken, but none have yet succeeded."
- "Dark matter is classified as 'cold', 'warm', or 'hot' according to its velocity (more precisely, its free streaming length)."
- "Recent models favored a cold dark matter scenario, in which structures emerge by the gradual accumulation of particles."
- "Recent gravitational wave and James Webb Space Telescope observations have considerably strengthened the case for primordial and direct collapse black holes."
- "Although the astrophysics community generally accepts dark matter's existence, a minority of astrophysicists, intrigued by specific observations that are not well-explained by ordinary dark matter, argue for various modifications of the standard laws of general relativity."
- "These include modified Newtonian dynamics, tensor–vector–scalar gravity, or entropic gravity."
- "So far, none of the proposed modified gravity theories can successfully describe every piece of observational evidence at the same time."
- "suggesting that even if gravity has to be modified, some form of dark matter will still be required." These quotes provide answers to the specified study questions based on the information in the paragraph.