The search for dark matter—an invisible substance believed to make up a whopping 27% of the universe—may be closer to a breakthrough. Scientists have been chasing this cosmic ghost for decades, and a new study led by Professor Joseph Silk is now fanning the flames of excitement. Using supercomputer simulations and data from NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, researchers have found that a mysterious glow of gamma rays coming from the heart of our galaxy fits neatly with what we’d expect if dark matter is real.
Here’s the context: Ordinary matter, the stuff we see and touch, is only about 5% of the universe. A far greater portion—68%—is dark energy, and that odd leftover slice, 27%, is dark matter. While no one’s ever seen dark matter directly (it doesn’t absorb, reflect, or emit light), its gravitational pull is unmistakable on a galactic scale.
The Galactic Center Gamma Ray Glow
Since 2009, astronomers have puzzled over a spherical “excess” of gamma rays beaming out from the center of the Milky Way. There have been two main ideas: Maybe it’s coming from rapidly spinning neutron stars, or maybe it’s the result of dark matter particles colliding and annihilating. Silk’s team ran detailed simulations, factoring in how dark matter might have flowed into the galaxy’s core over billions of years. When they compared their predictions to real Fermi telescope images, the gamma ray pattern was a match for dark matter—at least as good as the neutron star theory.
Professor Silk told the Daily Mail, “Our key new result is that dark matter fits the gamma ray data at least as well as the rival neutron star hypothesis.” It’s not a slam-dunk, but it’s the strongest hint so far that the mysterious glow could be the long-sought signature of dark matter.
Clues from Einstein Rings and Dwarf Galaxies
Meanwhile, astronomers aren’t just looking at the Milky Way. They’ve also detected a tiny “dark object” inside the warped light of a distant Einstein ring—gravitational lensing at its finest. This smallest-ever suspected clump of dark matter could shed more light on the universe’s missing mass.
What’s next? As Professor Silk points out, if future telescopes spot the same gamma ray signal in nearby dwarf galaxies (which should be rich in dark matter), it could be the clincher. For now, the hunt continues—but with every simulation and every new telescope image, the universe’s invisible fabric is coming a little more into focus.
