Nearly 50% of the persistent mysteries in the universe remain undiscovered.
According to a new study, researchers are utilizing a brief, anti-slip flash known as a High-speed wireless burst (FRB). They anticipate finding all baryonic matter—the “normal” matter comprising stars, planets, and other light-interacting objects in space. A study published on June 16th in the journal Natural Astronomy indicates that many of the “missing” materials are sparsely distributed across intergalactic space.
Baryonic matter, made up of particles like protons and neutrons, constitutes only 5% of the universe, while 27% remains unobservable as dark matter. The remainder is enigmatic dark energy, which facilitates the universe’s accelerated expansion. Despite this, scientists have observed only about half of the baryonic material theorized to have originated during the Big Bang.
In order to account for the remaining materials, researchers focused on 69 FRBs, illuminating the intergalactic space between the bursts and Earth. Although the source of FRBs is still unknown, most of the intense millisecond radio flashes occur outside the Milky Way.
“FRBs penetrate the haze of intergalactic media, and by precisely measuring the light’s deceleration, we can estimate the density of that medium, even when it’s not easily observable,” stated Liam Conner, an astronomer from Harvard University, in an official statement.
Related: New research suggests Earth’s upper atmosphere may contain the universe’s missing components
Through this methodology, Conner and his team determined that around 76% of the ordinary matter in the universe exists within the intergalactic medium, a hot gas that fills the vastness of intergalactic space. This accounts for approximately 15% more than what’s found in galaxy halos—a hot, spherical region at a galaxy’s edges. The remaining baryonic matter is believed to consist of stars, planets, and cold gases located within galaxies themselves.
“We can observe the shadows of all baryons, which are illuminated by the FRB,” stated research co-author Vikram Ravi, an astronomer from Caltech. “If you can see a person’s shadow, you can infer their presence and approximate size.”
The findings provide new insights into all baryonic matter in the universe, revealing not only its existence but also detailing its concentrations.
“I believe we’ve effectively solved the problem of missing baryons,” stated Nicholas Tejos, an astronomer from the Pope Catholic University of Valparaiso, who wasn’t part of the study. In an article for Science magazine, he added, “Thanks to FRBs, we are able to balance this baryon budget.”
In future studies, the team aims to utilize the proposed Deep Synoptic Array 2000, a system of 2,000 telescopes that will scan the entire sky over five years, identifying up to 10,000 new FRBs annually while investigating baryonic material in greater depth.
Source: www.livescience.com