Weak Gravitational Lensing Research Gets Boost

One of the most used methods of analyzing the distribution of dark matter throughout the Universe is called weak gravitational lensing (WGL). At this point, our technology has not yet evolved to a point where we can observe the elusive stuff directly, so we must rely on indirect observations ... [ read more >> ]

Visible matter follows an underlying dark matter scaffolding. To the left, blue indicates the mass of stars in galaxies in a given area, yellow the number of galaxies, and red the sources of brightest X-ray emissions

A spectacular example of strong gravitational lensing is the nearby galaxy cluster Abell 2218

Image comment: Visible matter follows an underlying dark matter scaffolding. To the left, blue indicates the mass of stars in galaxies in a given area, yellow the number of galaxies, and red the sources of brightest X-ray emissions
Image credits: Richard Massey et al, Nature 2007

Next >>

Visible matter follows an underlying dark matter scaffolding. To the left, blue indicates the mass of stars in galaxies in a given area, yellow the number of galaxies, and red the sources of brightest X-ray emissions