Under a night sky laughing …… in The odd entries from life …….

When Patrick Moore passed away just two years ago he seemed not to be impressed with ‘dark matter’ and there was that moment on ‘The Sky at Night’ not many years ago, Patrick was inside with a group astronomy professors all keen to talk about dark matter; Chris Lintott was out in the garden with a group of amateur astronomers.

The Professors in side had talked about dark matter, but then it was mostly theory in models of the universe’s would be with dark matter! At the close of that part of the program Patrick looked the professor’s in the eye’s and asked ‘can you tell what dark matter is’ the professor’s smiled but quiet; out side under the night sky Chris Lintott was leafing laughing …….

It is now just over two years since the great man passed, and I am reading an article about Dark Matter, note the upper case ‘D’ and ‘M’ yes things have changed! Now we are told that 85% of the matter in the universe is Dark Matter, having gravity now astronomers can see Dark Matter, the gravity of Dark Matter distorts or bends light.

It is thought that 99.99999999999% of Dark Matter is found in galaxy clusters, the Matter seems to not have interactions with others matter; and with it’s self. More is known now but I expect there is much to learn yet!

I write this as some one who has had a life long interest in astronomy without becoming an astronomer, thus I claim no expertise; but isn’t it festinating …….

Last updated March 27, 2015