There is a mysterious glow coming from the center of our galaxy – and scientists say it might assist clear up one of many universe’s deepest mysteries.
The diffuse glow of gamma rays in the direction of the guts of the Milky Way has been unexplained for many years. But researchers consider that it might be the results of colliding items of darkish matter, or the spinning of neutron stars.
If the reason is the previous, and the glow comes from darkish matter, it may be the primary ever proof that it really exists.
“Dark matter dominates the universe and holds galaxies together. It’s extremely consequential and we’re desperately thinking all the time of ideas as to how we could detect it,” stated co-author Joseph Silk, a professor of physics and astronomy at Johns Hopkins, in a press release.
“Gamma rays, and specifically the excess light we’re observing at the centre of our galaxy, could be our first clue.”
In a brand new examine, scientists made a map of the place they anticipated darkish matter to be discovered within the Milky Way. In its early years, smaller methods of darkish matter and different materials got here into the galaxy in the direction of its centred and clustered collectively, growing the variety of collisions between darkish matter.
Those maps are a part of a set of proof that implies that the glow of gamma rays on the center of the Milky Way are coming from darkish matter. The simulations present the identical sign and traits as these present in the actual world, they are saying.
But they word that outdated neutron stars which can be woken again up may be emitting gentle that may additionally clarify most of the identical items of proof. But, for that concept to work, scientists have to vary the maths barely to recommend there are extra of these pulsars in existence than they really see.
Researchers hope that one other experiment will lastly present extra certainty – and will give the primary proof of darkish matter. If the gamma rays have greater vitality, they’re in all probability these stars, whereas decrease vitality rays in all probability come from collisions between darkish matter.
“A clean signal would be a smoking gun, in my opinion,” Silk stated.
Until then, they hope to do comparable simulations of different galaxies across the Milky Way, after which evaluate that to the information.
“It’s possible we will see the new data and confirm one theory over the other,” Silk stated. “Or maybe we’ll find nothing, in which case it’ll be an even greater mystery to resolve.”