Decoding the Mystery of Dark Matter Using Galaxy Clusters

One of the main challenges faced by astronomers today is to understand the existence and behaviors of dark matter, which accounts for about 80% of the entire matter content in the Universe. Despite many theories of this mysterious substance, we have yet to achieve a full understanding of its nature and distribution throughout the universe, especially in the absence of signals from direct-detection experiments. At present, the search for dark matter has largely shifted back to the field of astrophysics. For instance, clusters of galaxies provide an excellent laboratory to study the characteristics of dark matter. By studying merging clusters, we can place upper limits on the cross-section of dark matter scattering. Learn how astronomers use galaxy clusters to study various aspects of dark matter, and what other exciting discoveries we are making by studying the largest gravitationally bound systems in the cosmos.

Speaker: Dr. Taweewat Somboonpanyakul, Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, Stanford University