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Article: The dark side of the universe. (Centre for Particle Astrophysics research) (Science and Technology)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- June 23, 1990
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1990 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA
ASTRONOMERS seem to be missing something: to wit, most of the matter in the universe. Between 90% and 99% of it simply refuses to shine, and is thus invisible to them. They know it is there, but not what sort of stuff it is. They do, however, have allies in their search: particle physicists, who suspect that the dark matter may be something more exotic than anything yet made in their vast machines.
The idea that most of the universe is invisible follows from the parts that are not. Galaxies, for example, spin too fast. If they were nothing more than the shining whirlpools of stars seen from earth, they would not be heavy enough to ...