Scientists using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have created a detailed map of dark matter, the invisible material that influences stars, galaxies, and planets like Earth. This map, published on Jan. 26 in Nature Astronomy, offers insights into how dark matter intertwines with regular matter to shape the universe on a vast scale.
The map, constructed with unprecedented sensitivity from the Webb telescope, provides new confirmations and details about how dark matter affects galaxy clusters spanning millions of light-years. This impact ultimately contributes to the formation of galaxies, stars, and planets. Lead author Diana Scognamiglio, an astrophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, described the map as the largest dark matter map produced by the Webb telescope, with twice the clarity of previous maps from other observatories. The enhanced resolution of Webb’s data allows scientists to visualize the intricate “invisible scaffolding” of the universe with stunning clarity.
Original Source: NASA