The amazing thing is that all these values fit in this single curve. If the values were different the peaks would shift left or right, or be higher or lower. While the image of the CMB is wonderful, with its swirls of color, this graph is even more wonderful. It tells us that our understanding of the universe is on track.
Seen and Unseen
When we look at our galaxy, we find it has more mass than the matter we see. Much more. This is the first clue that there must be dark matter in the Universe.
Raising the Bar
By measuring the distribution of hydrogen in our galaxy, we know that our galaxy is a barred spiral.
21 Centimeters
The 21cm line is a commonly used wavelength in astronomy. We can use it to measure the distribution of hydrogen in the Milky Way.
Dark Matters
The first evidence of dark matter came from observing the motion of stars in our own galaxy. It turns out stars were moving far more quickly than they should. Ever since then astronomers have tried to determine just what dark matter is.