The what? of dark matter causes baryonic gas and dust to what?
The presence of dark matter causes baryonic gas and dust to clump together due to gravity. The gravitational pull from dark matter acts as a scaffolding on which baryonic matter can condense, forming structures such as galaxies, galaxy clusters, and even larger cosmic web-like structures.
The presence of dark matter influences the behavior of baryonic gas and dust in the following ways:
1. Gravitational Clumping: Dark matter's gravitational pull causes the gas and dust to clump together. As dark matter attracts other dark matter and ordinary matter through gravity, it forms massive structures known as dark matter halos. These halos act as gravitational wells, drawing in surrounding gas and dust.
2. Assisting Galaxy Formation: Dark matter's gravitational influence helps in the formation of galaxies. As baryonic gas and dust accumulate within the dark matter halos, they start collapsing under their own gravity. This collapse leads to the formation of stars and galaxies.
3. Slowing Down Gas Dispersal: Dark matter provides additional gravitational pull to counteract the tendency of gas and dust to disperse. As the gas and dust collapse under gravity, dark matter helps to hold them together, preventing them from diffusing away and thus enabling the formation and stability of cosmic structures.
It is important to note that the direct interaction between dark matter and baryonic matter is still not fully understood, as dark matter does not emit or interact with light or other electromagnetic radiation. However, its gravitational effects play a crucial role in shaping the distribution of baryonic matter within the universe.
The presence of dark matter causes baryonic gas and dust to undergo a process called gravitational collapse.
To understand how dark matter causes this, let's break it down step by step:
1. Dark Matter: Dark matter is an invisible and elusive form of matter that is believed to make up a significant portion of the total matter in the universe. It does not interact with light or other electromagnetic radiation, which is why it is called "dark."
2. Gravitational Collapse: Gravitational collapse is a process in which a region of space becomes more densely packed due to the force of gravity. In the context of dark matter and baryonic gas and dust, gravitational collapse refers to the clumping or condensing of these materials under the influence of the gravitational pull of dark matter.
3. Baryonic Gas and Dust: Baryonic matter refers to ordinary matter made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons. Baryonic gas and dust encompass gases and small solid particles (such as interstellar dust) made up of baryonic matter.
Now, here's how the interaction between dark matter and baryonic gas and dust occurs:
1. Dark matter, due to its gravitational influence, forms halos around galaxies and other cosmic structures. These dark matter halos are like scaffolding in which galaxies are embedded.
2. The gravitational pull of the dark matter halo attracts and concentrates baryonic gas and dust within its gravitational potential well.
3. As the gas and dust gather and accumulate, the gravitational collapse begins. It causes the gas and dust to collapse in on itself, resulting in the formation of structures such as molecular clouds.
4. Within these dense regions, the gas and dust can further collapse under gravity, eventually forming stars, stellar clusters, and even entire galaxies.
So, in summary, the presence of dark matter causes baryonic gas and dust to go through gravitational collapse, ultimately leading to the formation of structures like stars and galaxies.