The Elephant in the Universe: 100-year search for dark matter Author: Govert Schilling New Puzzles, Speculative Theories, and the Future of the Hunt

The Elephant in the Universe: 100-year search for dark matter Author: Govert Schilling New Puzzles, Speculative Theories, and the Future of the Hunt Headline: Dark Crisis Deepens with Anomalous Galaxies and Emergent Gravity Theories The search for dark matter faces new challenges, such as the discovery of dwarf galaxies (e.g., DF44, the Dragonfly Galaxy) that appear to lack dark matter, posing a problem for both standard dark matter theory and MOND. With direct WIMP detection still elusive, physicists explore highly speculative theories: primordial black holes (black holes born in the Big Bang), fuzzy dark matter, or decaying dark matter, though these lack observational evidence. Theoreticians like Erik Verlinde propose "emergent gravity," suggesting gravity is not fundamental but arises from a deeper reality, which could imply dark matter doesn't exist at all. The ongoing search involves particle physics, underground experiments, powerful telescopes like the future Extremely Large Telescope, and the International Space Station's AMS experiment looking for antimatter signals, as scientists continue to refine theories and devise new ways to observe the unseen 1956