Dark matter is a theoretical invisible constituent of the universe used to explicate many dissimilar phenomena , but so far it has escape our detection . Now researchers have add up up with an account for how a controversial X - shaft of light expelling might be the dismal affair detection we ’ve been skip for .
Researchers from the University of Oxford have published a discipline on this widely debate signal , which is an emission line in the decade - light beam spectrum at the specific wavelength of 0.354 micromillimetre , or for the tenner - ray astronomers , 3.5 keV , a measure of the vim of the photon . The discipline , available fromPhysical Review D , tries to solve the controversy and also explicate what disconsolate matter should be like if it was indeed the rootage of the signal .
The whole affair started in 2014 when two autonomous groups witnessed the specific X - ray signal in interrogation . The expelling wasfirst observedin 73 galaxy clump using NASA ’s Chandra and ESA ’s XMM - Newton lookout andsubsequently confirmedin Andromeda and in the fringe of the Perseus cluster ’s central wandflower .
" One might recall that when Hitomi did n’t see the 3.5 keV line that we would have just confound in the towel for this occupation of investigation , " say carbon monoxide gas - generator Francesca Day in astatement . " On the contrary , this is where , like in any honest story , an interesting plot twist occur . "
The team actualise that Hitomi ’s field of view encompassed the whole key galaxy , not just the outskirt . So they checked with retiring observation of the central region from Chandra and XMM - Newton and discovered a deficit in the 3.5 keV discharge . Once the center and outskirt were rebuild together , they showed a picture consistent with Hitomi ’s observations .
The team taper the fingerbreadth at dark subject to explicate the distribution of the discharge . They suggest that dark matter particles absorb 10 - rays from the center of galaxies and then re - breathe them in random directions . So we do n’t see the sign when looking directly at it , but we do detect it in the outskirts .
" This is not a simple picture to paint , but it ’s possible that we ’ve establish a way to both explicate the unusual ecstasy - beam signal make out from Perseus and bring out a intimation about what morose subject really is , " tote up co - generator Nicholas Jennings .
While this is intriguing , more observations are necessary to see if this signal is triggered by dark matter or another phenomenon entirely . It is too other to tell .
" We expect that this consequence will either be hugely authoritative or a entire dud , " say Joseph Conlon of Oxford University , who led the newfangled study . " I do n’t think there is a halfway point when you are looking for reply to one of the big dubiousness in science . "
