engineering
+
technology
Space Detectives
Find Proof for
Dark Matter
Colliding Galaxy Clusters
Reveal Dark Matter
by W. Maria Wang
T
he line between reality and science fiction is
becoming increasingly blurred in the seemingly
vast emptiness of space, where a mysterious force
prevents galaxies from flying apart. Sound like a Twilight
Zone episode? According to Einstein’s theory of gravity, most
galaxies are missing visible mass required to account for
their rotation speeds. Consequently, since 1933 astronomers
have postulated a new form of matter—dark matter—to
account for the gravitational potential holding these galaxies
together. Proof for the existence of dark matter has recently
Dark matter has been notoriously hard to detect; it doesn’t emit or reflect radiation such as
light or heat, and only interacts gravitationally with itself and normal matter.
been obtained by Marusa Bradac, Ph.D., of the Kavli Institute
for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC) at Stanford
and her collaborators around the world.
The Hunt for Invisible Matter
Dark matter has been notoriously hard to detect; it
doesn’t emit or reflect radiation such as light or heat, and
36 stanford scientific
An artist’s rendition of how the very
early universe might have looked.
Photo Credit: ESA/ STScI/A. Schaller)
only interacts gravitationally with itself and normal matter.
The composition of dark matter is also unknown. However,
Bradac notes that we can study certain properties of dark
matter. “We know [dark matter] doesn’t scatter off each other
and only interacts through gravity,” says Bradac. “We also
know how it forms structures, so when we run simulations
with dark matter particles, it has to map out the galaxies
the same way we observe them.” These detailed maps of the
galaxies are used to measure the mass distribution of dark
matter inside them.
Just how much dark matter is there in the universe? The
general consensus among astronomers is that 25% of the
universe is composed of dark matter. “Whereas dark matter is
all around us, it’s a lot more smoothly distributed. Its density
is not large enough on Earth for us to feel its gravity,” says
Bradac. “The concentration of regular matter, like the earth,
is very high; that’s why we experience its gravity directly.”

Photo Credit: NASA, N. Benitez (JHU), T. Broadhurst (Racah Institute of Physics/The Hebrew University),
H. Ford (JHU), M. Clampin (STScI), G. Hartig (STScI), G. Illingworth (UCO/Lick Observatory), the ACS
Science Team and ESA
Galaxy Abell 1689’s “gravitational lens” reveals distorted background galaxies.
Tracing Shadows in the Sky
Dark matter was finally caught in action through
observations of a rare collision of two galaxy clusters three
billion light years away. Bradac and her team were able
to detect the dark matter through a phenomenon called
gravitational lensing. “Gravitational lensing works in a
similar way to how a regular magnifying glass works,” Bradac
explains. “When you have a background source emitting light
and then you put a magnifying glass in between [the observer
and the source].... you get a different, enlarged image. Except
in this case it’s not [made of] a glass type-material, but a
big lump of dark and luminous matter. Due to its gravity,
light will bend. That’s why we see distortions and multiple
images of the same background source.” These characteristic
increases in brightness from background galaxies allowed
the team to map out the mass in the colliding clusters.
Using the Hubble Space Telescope, the Magellan
Telescopes and the Very Large Telescope located in Chile,
as well as NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, the team
Most of the universe is dark. Only about 5% of it is ordinary
matter that can be “seen”; the rest is 25% dark matter
and 70% dark energy. Cosmologists have postulated the
existence of dark energy—a form of energy that exerts
negative pressure—to explain the expansion of the universe
at an accelerating rate. However, even less is known of dark
energy than of dark matter, which leads to the conclusion
that we are still in the dark on 95% of the universe!
layout design: Pam Bhattacharya
engineering
+
technology
discovered that as theory predicted, there were
two isolated regions of dark matter passing through
the collision unaffected, and two smaller clumps of
hot gas lagging behind. Bradac explains that in the clusters,
“There are a couple thousand galaxies that are so far apart
that they don’t see each other, so the chance that two galaxies
“Gravitational lensing works in
a similar way to how a regular
magnifying glass works.” -Bradac
collide is very small. They basically just go through in such
a collision. However, gas behaves like a fluid, so the gas did
interact and we got ram pressure stripping.”
Ram pressure stripping allowed the separation of dark
matter on either side of the collision from the gas in the
middle. Bradac describes this effect: “Imagine two gas
clouds smashed together; they would heat up and create
turbulence. That’s why [the gas] slows down and stays
in between.” Previous observations of individual clusters
with gas and dark matter yielded measurements of their
combined effects, which made it difficult to say how much
mass belonged to each component—gravitational lensing
only allows for determination of the total mass. But now that
the gas and dark matter were separated, Bradac and her team
could clearly see the mass that belonged to dark matter and
to gas. These breakthroughs will be published in upcoming
issues of the Astrophysical Journal and the Astrophysical
Journal Letters.
Alternate Realities
Some scientists, however, believe that there is no dark
matter, and that we need to modify our theories on gravity
Photo Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/CfA/M.Markevitch et al.; Lensing Map: NASA/STScI; ESO WFI; Magellan/
U.Arizona/D.Clowe et al.
This X-ray/optical/lensing map composite shows the galaxy cluster 1E 0657-56, also
known as the “bullet cluster.” Hot gas (pink) trails behind the two regions of dark matter
(blue) speeding away. Scale: Image is 7.5 x 5.4 arcmin.
volume v 37
engineering
+
technology “Because these clusters act as
lenses, they’re magnifying the
background sources. You can
study sources further away than
you would normally.” In a sense,
these massive clusters act as
“gravitational telescopes”.
Researchers are hoping to use
these clusters to see one of
the first galaxies formed.

The Search Continues

Perhaps one of the most
intriguing questions yet
ac
to be answered is: What
Brad
f M arusa is dark matter made of?
o
tesy
Cour
Particle astrophysicists
may soon be able to
directly detect dark
This image maps the separation matter using the Large
of hot gas (red) from dark matter (blue).
Hadron Collider (LHC) at
CERN, the world’s largest
instead. “For particle physics laboratory. “We don’t know what the mass
this system in particular,” of dark matter is,” states Bradac. “There are many different
Bradac says, “there was no way to models, and depending on which is right, we might or might
modify the laws of gravity in order to explain not detect it in 2007 [using the LHC, a particle accelerator].
the observations, although people are now trying hard to It might be out of the mass range of detector sensitivity.”
come up with alternative explanations. They might come up When asked about the arcane nature of her work, Bradac
with modified theories [to] explain the system without dark responded, “I had undergraduates working for me during
matter. That’s why it’s important to continue finding new the summer, and they were doing exactly the same type
systems.” of research I was doing. Because it is such a collaborative
effort, if students are interested they can join. It was so many
Beyond the Stars different clues and sources of data that came together in
Measuring the dark matter distribution in as many order to create this story.” S
different systems as possible—from clusters to individual
galaxies—and then comparing these measurements with W. MARIA WANG is a third-year graduate student in Chemical
simulations will help piece together the cosmological model: Engineering. When she is not tinkering with molecules and
how the universe started and where it is going. Multiple nanoparticles in the lab, she enjoys dancing and all things literary.
systems are required for elucidating the behavior of dark
To Learn More
matter and its profile. “We just got new data for the same
cluster. Now we are trying to study the properties of dark For a cool simulation of the colliding clusters, visit
http://www.slac.stanford.edu/~jwise/research/movies/HiResBullet.mov
matter in a bit more detail,” Bradac says.
Photo Credit: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss
The most likely candidate for dark matter is the hypothetical
Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP). WIMPS are
thought to be smaller than atoms and only interact with
matter gravitationally. Other substances termed MAssive
Compact Halo Objects (MACHOs) have also been considered
to comprise dark matter. MACHOs include brown dwarfs,
an intermediate between stars and planets, that are not
luminous enough to be directly detected by telescopes.
However, Bradac says, “If indeed dark matter is in the form
of [MACHOs], it would cause an observable effect on the
so-called micro-lensing event. When we look at stars in
neighboring galaxies, we would have to see the occasional
An idealized schematic of gravitational lensing due to the massive galaxy cluster
amplification due to these lumps of material, but not enough in the middle. Its gravity bends light from the background galaxy to create two
of these signatures have been seen in order to explain dark distorted images of galaxies seen above and below the real location. Analysis of
matter as being completely made of this normal matter.” these images from many background sources allows mapping of the mass in the
cluster. Scale: Image is 13.5 x 10.6 arcmin.

38 stanford scientific