Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Dark Galaxy


This blog has always emphasised that there is more in the Universe than meets the eye. Theory predicts, and observations confirm that baryonic matter is only 4.507034% of the total mass. Flying over a city at night, the lights we see are just a hint of what lies beneath. The matter we see is only a small fraction of what is out there.

Object VIRGOH121 was first noticed in 2000 by its influence on a nearby galaxy. NGC 4254 has a huge stream of matter torn from its side. It must have suffered a collision with an object of 100 billion solar masses. When the most powerful telescopes looked in this region they saw nothing. VIRGOH121 contains no stars. Only by its radio emissions was it located.

When this research was first published, the astronomy community was very skeptical. Alternative theories were cooked up to explain the observations. Perhaps they invoked some sort of "dark energy." Now, 7 years after first publication, there is conclusive evidence that VIRGOH121 is a dark galaxy. It is entirely made up of dark mass, which could be Black Holes.

We are fortunate to have found VIRGOH121 because of its collision with a visible galaxy. There could be many, many more dark galaxies out there. If the dark mass is composed of Black Holes, they would have formed shortly after the Big Bang and never have been matter. Dark mass could be everywhere, even within our solar neighbourhood.


The next time you look up at the stars, try to imagine a parallel Universe occupting the same Space/Time. this Universe is hidden from our eyes, yet contains 20 times as much mass. Interactions with this dark mass created galaxies, stars and even planets. Our understanding of the Universe is just beginning.

Labels: , ,

8 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Louise,

If Dark Mass is prevalent throughout our galaxy (and perhaps our solar system) would an encounter with it be fatal?

8:45 AM  
Blogger L. Riofrio said...

I've done some calculations which I hope to publish soon. Even if the dark mass were in our solar system, the density would be the mass of one Uluru (Ayers Rock) in a region the size of Australia. You can wander Australia a whole lifetime and never see Uluru, which is big enough to be seen for kilometres.

This mass would be concentrated in the radius of a proton, with a gravitational influence the size of a small room! The probability of encountering a dark mass particle would be equal to the chance of wandering into Russell Crowe's bedroom.

12:19 PM  
Blogger Neil Bates said...

I am not sure what in theory predicts only a small percentage, and how exactly "4.507034%" of baryonic matter in the universe? (I suppose that doesn't include leptons, photons, etc... so the percentage of dark matter is not as much as 95.492966%?

4:32 AM  
Anonymous Viagra said...

I like those topics because I like so much the space and the mystery it has, actually I believe in extraterrestrials too.

6:18 AM  
Anonymous Viagra said...

With science everything varies, we believe one thing but in actuality it's completely different.

4:33 AM  
Anonymous cialis order said...

I am thoroughly convinced in this said post. I am currently searching for ways in which I could enhance my knowledge in this said topic you have posted here. It does help me a lot knowing that you have shared this information here freely. I love the way the people here interact and shared their opinions too. I would love to track your future posts pertaining to the said topic we are able to read.

8:00 AM  
Anonymous Lorazepam 1 mg rezeptfrei said...

I like topics like this. I hope we are not alone in the universe.

12:35 AM  
Anonymous Cialis said...

Great website, continue the Excellent work!

9:09 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home

Locations of visitors to this page