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Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / Does dark matter gravitate toward regular matter?
« on: 21/04/2009 06:35:53 »
Regular matter is dispersed throughout the galaxy at very high density and low volume as compared to the vacuum of space. Massive objects such as stars, planets and nebula orbit around the centre of faster than they otherwise should if we only take into account the visible matter. It is theorised that dark matter holds the galaxy together with four to five times the gravitational force generated by the visible matter, therefore allowing the faster orbital speeds of the visible matter.
If our galaxy is awash with this abundant dark matter and it is gravitationally attractive why aren't those massive bodies in our solar system collecting the dark matter in their volume or orbit causing a larger dent in space-time. With time we should see the earth falling toward the sun, its visible mass plus accumulated dark matter forever increasing with time.
There are a couple of reasons why this hasn't happened.
Our solar system has only come into contact with very negligible quantities of dark matter.
Dark matter has an exceptionally high minimum volume compared with regular matter and cannot clump around astronomical bodies, causing a noticeable effect.
Dark matter doesn't gravitate toward regular matter but matter gravitated towards dark matter implying a one way relationship between the two.
Are any of these reasons correct? Or is this something that physicists don't yet know?
If our galaxy is awash with this abundant dark matter and it is gravitationally attractive why aren't those massive bodies in our solar system collecting the dark matter in their volume or orbit causing a larger dent in space-time. With time we should see the earth falling toward the sun, its visible mass plus accumulated dark matter forever increasing with time.
There are a couple of reasons why this hasn't happened.
Our solar system has only come into contact with very negligible quantities of dark matter.
Dark matter has an exceptionally high minimum volume compared with regular matter and cannot clump around astronomical bodies, causing a noticeable effect.
Dark matter doesn't gravitate toward regular matter but matter gravitated towards dark matter implying a one way relationship between the two.
Are any of these reasons correct? Or is this something that physicists don't yet know?