Aug 29, 2023 05:59 PM
(This post was last modified: Aug 29, 2023 07:31 PM by C C.)
https://www.livescience.com/physics-math...nsequences
EXCERPTS: . . . But whatever it really is, dark matter has gravity, and so it naturally collects in regions of strong gravity. The regions of strongest gravity in the universe are black holes, but because they don't let anything back out again, they're not useful when studying dark matter.
The next strongest gravitational environments are the remnants of dead stars, particularly neutron stars. Neutron stars are a hundred trillion times denser than Earth [...] They are also excellent laboratories for studying dark matter, as they likely have the highest concentrations of the mysterious substance anywhere in the universe, according to a study scheduled to appear in the journal Physics Reports. (The study has yet to be peer-reviewed).
In the new study, the researchers explored how dark matter can have a variety of effects deep within neutron stars, depending on what the dark matter is made of and how it might interact with normal matter...
Just the accumulation of dark matter can heat up neutron stars if it strikes particles of normal matter on its way in. In the most extreme possibilities, a particle of dark energy could deposit just the right amount of energy to trigger a "superburst" inside a neutron star, launching a runaway nuclear chain reaction that detonates the entire star, destroying it.
Even without interactions, dark matter could cause havoc. If it builds up and accumulates in the core, it would increase the overall mass of the neutron star. If the mass gets too high, the star’s core could implode into a black hole, swallowing the rest of the star in the process... (MORE - missing details)
EXCERPTS: . . . But whatever it really is, dark matter has gravity, and so it naturally collects in regions of strong gravity. The regions of strongest gravity in the universe are black holes, but because they don't let anything back out again, they're not useful when studying dark matter.
The next strongest gravitational environments are the remnants of dead stars, particularly neutron stars. Neutron stars are a hundred trillion times denser than Earth [...] They are also excellent laboratories for studying dark matter, as they likely have the highest concentrations of the mysterious substance anywhere in the universe, according to a study scheduled to appear in the journal Physics Reports. (The study has yet to be peer-reviewed).
In the new study, the researchers explored how dark matter can have a variety of effects deep within neutron stars, depending on what the dark matter is made of and how it might interact with normal matter...
Just the accumulation of dark matter can heat up neutron stars if it strikes particles of normal matter on its way in. In the most extreme possibilities, a particle of dark energy could deposit just the right amount of energy to trigger a "superburst" inside a neutron star, launching a runaway nuclear chain reaction that detonates the entire star, destroying it.
Even without interactions, dark matter could cause havoc. If it builds up and accumulates in the core, it would increase the overall mass of the neutron star. If the mass gets too high, the star’s core could implode into a black hole, swallowing the rest of the star in the process... (MORE - missing details)