Gravitational Optics, Dark Matter, and the Evolution of Faint Galaxies

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AST 0206286BlandfordThere is now considerable evidence that at least eighty percent of the matter in the Universe is in a dark form that cannot be seen directly, using astronomical telescopes. This dark matter is found on scales spanning six decades, from the cores of galaxies to the size of the Universe. One of the best ways to probe the distribution of this dark matter is to use gravitational optics - the measurement of the small deflections of light rays induced by the gravitational force from the dark matter itself. By measuring these light deflections, we can infer the properties of the dark matter. Over the past two decades, Dr. Blandford and his collaborators have devised a suite of specialized techniques to detect dark matter over this wide range, from cores of galaxies to scales up to 106 times larger. This project will contribute to the development of several of these techniques and will implement them in three cases where data already exists that can be used for this purpose. These will be used to construct an integrated, observationally based description of the distribution of dark matter in the universe that can be used to compare with theoretical calculations. ****