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

现在有相当多的证据表明，宇宙中至少80%的物质以一种无法用天文望远镜直接观测到的黑暗形式存在。这种暗物质是在60年的尺度上发现的，从星系的核心到宇宙的大小。探测暗物质分布的最佳方法之一是使用引力光学——测量由暗物质本身的引力引起的光线的微小偏转。通过测量这些光的偏转，我们可以推断出暗物质的性质。在过去的二十年里，布兰福德博士和他的合作者设计了一套专门的技术来探测如此广泛的暗物质，从星系的核心到106倍大的尺度。本项目将有助于发展其中若干技术，并将在已有数据可用于这一目的的三种情况下实施这些技术。这些将用于构建一个完整的、基于观测的宇宙暗物质分布描述，可以用来与理论计算进行比较。＊＊＊＊

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. ****