UCLA Astrophysicists' Simulations Challenge Current Dark Matter Theories

Discovery of brighter than expected early galaxies could reshape understanding of dark matter.

UCLA astrophysicists have run simulations that track the formation of small galaxies after the Big Bang, including previously neglected interactions between gas and dark matter.
The simulations reveal that these galaxies are much smaller, brighter, and form more quickly than in typical simulations that don't account for these interactions.
The researchers suggest that if scientists only find faint galaxies using telescopes like the James Webb Space Telescope, then some theories about dark matter might be incorrect.
Dark matter, which makes up 84% of the universe's matter, is impossible to study directly, but its presence has been inferred from its gravitational effects on ordinary matter.
The discovery of bright patches of galaxies in the early universe could offer an effective test for theories about dark matter.