Conference "The enigma of dark matter in the Universe".

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  • Dates: January 18, 2018
  • Timetable: 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
  • Location:

Thursday, January 18, 2018 at 8 p.m.
Galileo Planetarium
By Julien Lavalle, CNRS researcher and theoretical physicist at the Laboratoire Univers et Particules de Montpellier (LUPM).
Thanks to the considerable theoretical and observational developments in modern physics, it is now possible to have a coherent representation of the cosmos on almost all scales, from the infinitely small to the infinitely large, i.e. from the scale of elementary particles to that of the Universe as a whole. Recent cosmological measurements have enabled us to draw up an energy balance for the Universe. In particular, it has been established that our universe is "flat", that its expansion is accelerating, and that the vast majority of matter is made up of an unknown component (85%), invisible, and interacting only gravitationally (or almost) with the ordinary matter that characterizes our intelligible environment. The accelerating expansion manifests itself as a repulsive force known as "dark energy", while the unknown matter component is given the equally ominous moniker of "dark matter".
Do these strange words mean that the sky is falling? Will star wars begin? Of course not! They simply tell us that most of the universe is still beyond our comprehension, at least for the time being...
In this talk, Julien Lavalle will focus on the question of dark matter, trying to show how it affects all macroscopic scales of the Universe, from the scale of galaxies to the scale of the cosmos, and how it turns out to be even indispensable to our understanding of galaxy formation.
He will show how this cosmological and astrophysical enigma can find solutions in the physics of the infinitely small (in the form of new elementary particles), what theoretical avenues are currently being explored, and how the signatures of these hypothetical particles are being sought directly and indirectly, using telescopes as much as particle gas pedals.
The observational vise is gradually tightening around the most promising theoretical solutions thanks to a multitude of complementary international experiments operating in this field, and a large proportion of these solutions will either be highlighted or excluded in the very next few decades.
The conference will be introduced by a screening of the film "Fantôme de l'Univers - la chasse à la matière noire" (Phantom of the Universe - the hunt for dark matter) on the Planetarium dome.
Free admission upon reservation by e-mail by leaving your full name, e-mail address and telephone number.
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