Illuminating the dark side of the universe
The major part of the Cosmos is composed by the so-called dark universe. Barely 18% of the total matter in the universe is made up of the elements in atoms with which we are familiar, while the remaining 82%, termed dark matter, is the dominant type of matter in galaxies. But most intriguing is the fact that all matter, ordinary and dark, currently only makes up 31% of the energy in the universe, with the rest being an even more mysterious component called dark energy which causes the universe as a whole to accelerate while it is expanding. Between them, the dark matter and dark energy can be grouped together to form the "dark side of the universe".
Advancing these fundamental questions is currently the focus of a multidisciplinary effort at the frontiers of astrophysics, cosmology and particle physics, i.e. astroparticle physics, that is setting the scene for future scientific breakthroughs. Among these major puzzles the problem of dark matter exhibits the most diverse set of observational manifestations, ranging from the cosmic microwave background and the large-scale distribution of galaxies to galactic dynamics. Hence, this area of astroparticle physics is the subject of extensive theoretical scrutiny. Moreover, the field is witnessing a golden era due to the recent extraordinary advances in multi-messenger astronomy.
The UNDARK consortium, where UNDARK stands for "Unravelling the Dark Universe from the Canary islands Observatories", aims at resolving the constituents and the laws which govern this dark side of the universe.
The UNDARK consortium is led by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) which acts as coordinator of the action and contributes to the scientific goals of the project with the telescopes installed in the Canary Islands Observatories, under its administration, and the astronomical expertise of its research groups. The partners of the project, on the other hand, are internationally reputed institutions in the area of astroparticle theory and theoretical cosmology, with focus on the phenomenology of the existing hypothesis for the nature of dark matter. These institutions are the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) , the Instituto de Física de Altas Energías (IFAE) , the Centre national de la recherche scientifique through its Laboratoire d'Annecy-le-Vieux de Physique Théorique (CNRS-LAPTh) , and the Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) .
The scientific goals will be complemented by an extensive outreach program developed in parallel which aims to boost the recognition of the IAC within the general public and public funding bodies. Finally, UNDARK also incorporates training activities led by SaturnTech the focused on research management to increase the management capacity of the IAC and its involvement in "Horizon Europe" funding programs.
UNDARK is funded through the Widening participation and spreading excellence programme (project number 101159929), which is part of the European Research Area (ERA) Policy Agenda and aims to harmonise research and innovation (R&I) capacities among all EU countries. The project will run from October 1st 2024 until September 30th 2027.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
