O Newton, or dark matter

2007/06/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Fisika

According to Newton's second law, the force of a body is the result of multiplying the mass of the body by acceleration. They have repeatedly demonstrated it on earth. In space, some stars and galaxies have more force than would correspond to them according to Newton's law.

This fact has been the subject of two possible explanations. One, the failure to comply with Newton's law, due to the low acceleration of galaxies (with an approximate acceleration of 1x10-10 m/s2), and another, the participation of some other force in the movement of galaxies: forces of dark matter.

Some physicists at the University of Washington have shown that even with very low acceleration Newton's law is fulfilled (test performed with a pendulum of 5x10-14 m/s2 acceleration). This test reinforces the belief that dark matter is responsible for the high speed of galaxies.

Dark matter is matter that you have not yet seen but have come to the conclusion that it exists. The known and visible matter of space sometimes does not comply with known physical laws. Therefore, in order to explain the measurements they make, scientists have concluded that in space there is a matter that is not seen, that is, a dark matter.