Weldon J. WilsonDepartment of Engineering and Physics

University of Central OklahomaEdmond, OK 73034-5209

cyberphysics.com/wwilsonwwilson@uco.edu

Unsolved Mysteries(of Physics)

The Speakable and the Unspeakable

The Speakable

96% of matter/energy is a mystery. It has never been observed even in our best laboratories or observatories!

Dark Energy

Speeding Up !!!

2 20

0

20

0

1 1

2 2

1 1v v

GMm GMmmv mv

r r

GMr r

Should slow down

“Right now, not only for cosmology but for elementary particle theory, this is the bone in our throat.” - Steven Weinberg

“… Maybe the most fundamentally mysterious thing in basic science.” - Frank Wilczek

“… would be No. 1 on my list of things to figure out.” - Edward Witten

“Basically, people don’t have a clue as to how to solve this problem.” - Jeff Harvey

‘This is the biggest embarrassment in theoretical physics” - Michael Turner

The SpeakableDark energy appears to be the dominant component of the physical Universe, yet there is no persuasive theoretical explanation. The acceleration of the Universe is, along with dark matter, the observed phenomenon which most directly demonstrates that our fundamental theories of particles and gravity are either incorrect or incomplete. Most experts believe that nothing short of a revolution in our understanding of fundamental physics will be required to achieve a full understanding of the cosmic acceleration. For these reasons, the nature of dark energy ranks among the very most compelling of all outstanding problems in physical science.

Dark Energy Task Force (DETF) astro-ph/0609591

All the Current Theories of Dark Energy

There are none!

The Speakable

80% of all matter is a mystery. It’s effect is seen only in gravitation.

Fritz ZwickyCaltech Professor of Astrophysics

(1927-1968)Tech Director Aerojet Engineering (1941-1961) – "father“ of modern jet

engine

• 1929 – Introduced “tired light” hypothesis to explain Hubble Red Shift

• 1931 – Introduced idea of exploding star origin of cosmic rays – supernova/neutron star

• 1933 – Introduced idea of Dark Matter• 1937 – Gravitational Lens

1936 – Founded (along with Theodore von Kármán, Frank Malina, Jack Parsons) the Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology (GALCIT) that in 1943 became the Jet Propulsion Laboratories (JPL)

1943– Founded (along with Theodore von Kármán, Frank Malina, Jack Parsons) the Aerojet Corporation

19612-1968 – Published a comprehensive six volume Catalogue of galaxies and of clusters of galaxies.

Zwickyvon Kármán

Malina

Parsons

Basic Idea

gravity From this, you can calculate the orbital speed, if you know the mass of the galaxy

(Specifically the mass inside the orbit)

2

2

v

v

F ma

GMmm

R R

GM

R

NGC 3198

Zwicky proposes Dark Matter to explain this discrepancy of theory with observations. But what is it?

MACHO ???

MAssive Compact Halo Objects

Massive Compact HAlo Objects

“Gravitational Lensing”

FarObject You

Intervening Object

Idea:• Compact and dark objects

pervade the galactic halo.• Look at distant stars

(Large Magellanic Cloud).• Try to find when one

spontaneously brightens.

Baryonic Matter Summary:

The amount of dark baryonic matter can only account for about 20% of the dark matter in the Milky Way region.

And then only with substantial modification of galaxy formation dynamics.

Bonds

Manilow

White

Goldwater

Non Baryonic Dark Matter Candidates

Hot Dark Matter

• Hot means high momentum and typically light

• Candidates• Neutrinos (n)

• Discovered in 1998 to have mass

• Recent studies show they can only have 0.3% of needed Dark Matter.

• Exotica• Etc.

Cold Dark Matter

• Cold means low momentum and typically heavy

• Candidates• New variant of neutrino

• New kind of particle (supersymmetric neutralino)

• WIMPS (Weakly Interacting Massive Particles)

Cold Dark Matter: Direct Searches

Very hard to do

• Approximately 1,000,000 pass through you every second.

• If they exist at all.

• The reason they are “Dark” is theydon’t interact much with ordinary matter.

• They will shake atoms when they (rarely) hit one.

• Atoms are always shaking due to heat.

• Your detector must be (nearly) infinitely cold.

WIMPS

Mordehai Milgrom1983 

Modified Newtonian DynamicsMOND

What if Newton was wrong?

Newton said that Force was proportional to Acceleration

MOND

Suppose Newton was right for large accelerations, but for small accelerations, his formula breaks down?

• Proposed by Milgrom - 1983• Heavily criticized thereafter

MOND Newton’s Law

MOND Modification

Comments and Thoughts:

How does MOND go from one behavior to the other?

Why hasnt anyone else seen this modification of Newton’s laws?

No Idea….

We’re talking very small accelerations here…1/100,000,000,000 × Earth’s gravity…..

F a

2F a

MOND: Modification of Newtonian Dynamics

What if Newton was wrong?

maF

o

o

o

aa

aa

aa

m

ma

F

2

MOND

MOND: Basic Idea

centrifugal

gravity

centrifugal gravity

22v

o

m

a r

2

MmGr

=

=

2v 1/2

oGMa=

But does it work?

0

am a Fa

Fits to v (r) for both LSB & HSB Galaxies

Tully-FisherRelation

20

222 0 0

2 2

40

v

v

Mm aF ma G m a

r a

Ma Maa G G

r r r

GMa

4vL M

MOND T-F Relation!!

Explanations

• Unseen (and unobserved) exotic matter

• WIMPs• Currently

massive searches underway

• MOND• Needs better

theoretical motivation

Cat Fight

What is the prevailing wisdom?• No honest physicist will tell you

that they know.

• Dark matter is popular because particle physicists are looking for a similar particle (for different reasons)

• MOND needs work. But there is no disputing that it describes galactic rotation curves (and other stuff)

Summary/Speculation• MOND has amazing ability to model data

taken after it was invented• Excellent fits to galaxy rotation curves require

M/L(colour) as from SS theory • Compelling evidence that negligible DM

interior to Sun• Now limiting form of Lorentz covariant theory• MOND really might be the next great step in

physics

The UnspeakableThe unspeakable refers to a “hidden evil whose depth and deceit goes beyond the capacity of words to describe.” - Thomas Merton

Awarded Noble Prize in 1978

Telstar(1962)

• First Private Financed Satellite, (AT&T)• Transponder to relay One TV channel

or 12 multiplexed telephone signals• Frequency - 4 GHz• Solar Powered – 14 Watts!

Arno Penzias and Robert Woodrow WilsonDiscover Big Bang 1962

(2.73 K Blackbody Radiation)

Awarded Noble Prize in 1978

Arno Penzias doing real experimental work

COBE, 1989

WMAP, 2001

Telstar, 1962

Absolute Motion Relative to theLocal Absolute Rest Frame

Moving toward Leo at ~375 km/s (0.12% c)

Absolute Motion(relative to background radiation)

????Local Absolute

Rest Frame

All the Current Scientific Discussions and Papers on the CBR Dipole Anisotropy

There are none!

Extra Credit • Propose a model that explains Dark Energy

(Any model will do – reasonable or not)

• Discover what Dark Matter consists of and/or place MOND on good theoretical basis

• Explain CBR Dipole Anisotropy within the

current Paradigm (Any discussion will do – reasonable or not)

Deadline: None.

References• Bekenstein J., Milgrom M. ApJ, 286, 7 (1984).• Milgrom M., ApJ, 270, 365 (1983).• Milgrom M., ApJ, 270, 371 (1983).• Nicolson , Iain , Dark Side of the Universe: Dark Matter,

Dark Energy, and the Fate of the Cosmos, ISBN: 0801885922 , (2007).

• Pendle, George, Strange Angel: The Otherworldly Life of Rocket Scientist John Whiteside Parsons. ISBN: 015100997X (2005).

• Shaw, Mark, Beneath The Mask of Holiness –Thomas Merton and the Forbidden Love Affair that Set Him Free. ISBN: 0230616534 (2009).