Valin Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 The hidden tendrils of dark matter that underlie the visible Universe may have been traced out for the first time. BBC Simon Redfern 1/20/14 An intense quasar can, like a flashlight, illuminate part of the surrounding cosmic web Cosmology theory predicts that galaxies are embedded in a cosmic web of "stuff", most of which is dark matter. Astronomers obtained the first direct images of a part of this network, by exploiting the fact that a luminous object called a quasar can act as a natural "cosmic flashlight". Details of the work appear in the journal 1 Nature. The quasar illuminates a nearby gas cloud measuring two million light-years across. And the glowing gas appears to trace out filaments of underlying dark matter. (Snip) 1 Nature Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clearvision Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Interesting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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