A new study of the Perseus galaxy cluster, shown in this image, and others using Chandra and XMM-Newton has revealed a mysterious X-ray signal in the data. The signal is also seen in over 70 other galaxy clusters using XMM-Newton. This unidentified signal requires further investigation to confirm both its existence and nature, but one possibility is that it represents the decay of ‘sterile neutrinos’, one proposed candidate to explain dark matter.
Image credit: Chandra: NASA/CXC/SAO/E.Bulbul, et al.; XMM-Newton: ESA)
Note: For more information, see Puzzling X-Rays Point to Dark Matter, Perseus Galaxy Cluster, Perseus A: Mysterious X-ray Signal Intrigues Astronomers, and Mystery in the Perseus Cluster.
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