了解宇宙是如何运行的（2010）

How the Universe Works S10E03

Part 3 Aug. 5, 2022, 5:04 p.m.

where dark matter should
be by letting computers
试图预测暗物质应该存在的地方
map out
where we think it lives.
布洛克:因为我们认为我们知道它的行为
[Bullock] Because we think
we know how it behaves,
我们可以在超级计算机模拟中模拟它应该做什么
we can model what it should
be doing in supercomputer
simulations.
该团队向计算机输入了暗物质如何弯曲光线
The team taught
the computer how dark matte
bends light,
然后将计算能力应用于17000个未探索的星系
then applied computational
power to 17,000
unexplored galaxies.
该模型创造了一幅暗物质地图
The model created
a dark matter map.
我想很多人，当他们想象宇宙更大的尺度时
I think a lot of people,
when they imagine the universe
on the larger scales,
会觉得它有点无聊，一切都是统一的
think it's sort of boring,
everything's uniform.
但我们看到的不是这样的
But that's not what we see.
令人惊讶的是，在宇宙的更大尺度上
What's amazing is that
on the larger scales
of the universe,
我们看到了一种非常特殊的模式
we see a very
particular pattern.
当我们把镜头拉近，我们看到了这个宏伟的结构
When we zoom out,
we see this magnificent
structure,
这个由暗物质形成的宇宙网
this cosmic web
that's created by dark matter.
暗物质交织的卷须
The interweaving tendrils
of dark matter stretch
在宇宙中绵延数千光年
for thousands of light year
across the cosmos.
在暗物质聚集的交汇处我们发现星系
At the junctions where matte
is concentrated,
we find galaxies form,
在里面形成，并照亮黑暗的“脚手架”
illuminating
the dark scaffold.
如果暗物质存在，科学家们相信
If dark matter exists,
scientists believe
它占宇宙物质的85%，还控制着
it makes up 85% of the matte
in the universe,
剩下的15%的常规物质
and also controls
the remaining
15% regular matter,
比如恒星、行星和我们
like stars, planets, us.
如果他们是对的，那么暗物质在我们今天看到的
If they're right, dark matte
played a critical role
宇宙的形成过程中起到了至关重要的作用
in actually building
the universe we see today.
2021年
2021.
天文学家利用澳大利亚的“星图家”天文台
Astronomers using
the SkyMapper observatory
in Australia
训练专业光学仪器观测一个名为 Tucana II 的矮星系
trains specialist optics
on a dwarf galaxy
called Tucana II.
星图家望远镜的滤光片将星光分解成波长光谱
The SkyMapper's filters
split up the starlight
into a spectrum of wavelengt
显示出一些非常古老的光
revealing some
very ancient light.
[特朗布莱]我们能在宇宙中放置的最好的时钟之一
[Tremblay] One of the best
clocks that we can put
on the universe
要归功于化学的进步
is the progress of chemistry.
对吧？
Right?
随着时间的推移，更复杂元素的积累
The build-up of more complex
elements over time.
如果不是复杂化学物质的工厂，恒星什么都不是
Stars are nothing
if not factories
of chemical complexity.
它们将粒子撞击在一起，产生更重的元素
They slam, uh, particles
together and create
heavier elements,
这是通过一种叫做聚变的过程
right, through a process
called fusion.
恒星形成的时间越晚，其化学成分就越复杂
The later the generation
of star, the more chemicall
complex it is.
Tucana II 的光谱特征表明，它的恒星中
Tucana II's
spectral signature
reveals its stars contain
很少含有这种重的复杂元素
very few of these heavy
complex elements.
这条线索可以让天体物理学家计算出星系的年龄
A clue that lets
astrophysicists calculate
the age of the galaxy.
这些都是非常非常古老的恒星形成于宇宙的早期
These are very, very old stars
from the very early days
of the universe
那时宇宙中的气体化学成分还不那么复杂
when the gas
in the universe was not
that chemically complex.
Tucana II 可能是我们所能看到的
Tucana II might be one
of the oldest known structur
宇宙中最古老的结构之一
that we can see
in our local universe.
它可能有130亿年的历史
It could be as old
as 13 billion years.
你懂的，几乎和宇宙本身一样古老
You know, almost as old
as the universe itself.
这个古老的星系很小
This grand old la
of a galaxy is a tiny thing
只有3000颗恒星
Barely 3,000 stars.
然而，在遥远的星系边缘
And yet, way out
on her galactic rim,
恒星们正以惊人的速度绕圈
stars hurdle around
at breakneck speed.
[普莱特]当你观察这个超暗矮星系的质量时
[Plait] When you look
at the mass of this
ultra-faint dwarf galaxy,
你会发现它的质量只有太阳的几千倍
it only has a few thousand
times the mass of the sun.
真的非常小
That's really small.
以这样的速度，它应该会四分五裂
And at the speed it's moving,
it should fly apart.
Tucana II没有分解，因为
Tucana II doesn'
break up because
it's glued together,
它被大量的暗物质粘合在一起
apparently by an incredible
amount of dark matter.
当你观察像我们的银河系这样的星系时
When you look at a galaxy
like our Milky Way,
它大约有85%是暗物质，这是很多的
it's about 85% dark matter,
which is a lot.
但在 Tucana II 中，比例更接近99%
But with Tucana II,
it's more like 99%.
Tucana II 是宇宙中最古老的星系之一
Tucana II is old
among the oldest galaxies
in the universe
它充满了暗物质
and it is packed full
of dark matter.
模拟表明，暗物质从一开始就在 Tucana II
Simulations suggest
this dark matter played a ke
role in shaping Tucana II
和其他非常早期的星系的形成中发挥了重要作用
and other very early galaxie
right from the beginning,
将常规物质聚集成团，并构建了第一批星系
gathering regular matter
into clumps and building
the first galaxies.
[泰勒]暗物质的重要性怎么强调都不为过
[Thaller] The importance
of dark matter
really can't be overstated.
它实际上控制着
It has actually controlled
the way matter has evolved
自宇宙诞生以来物质的演化方式
since the beginning
of the universe.
它使物质聚集在一起
It brings matter together.
宇宙需要以暗物质为底层结构来让所有一切发生
You need this underlying
structure of dark matter
to make it all happen.
科学家们认为，在早期宇宙成长的数十亿年间
Scientists think
that for billions of years
as the early universe grew,
暗物质起着决定性的作用
dark matter called the shots
如果没有引力，像银河系这样的结构就不会形成
Without its gravity,
structures like the Milky Wa
wouldn't have formed.
我们已经看到了暗物质的光弯曲效应
We've seen dark matter's
light-bending effects.
我们甚至推断出了它的位置
We've even deduced
where it should be.
暗物质似乎确实存在
Dark matter really does
appear to exist,
但这个证据不是直接的，是间接的
but this evidence
is indirect, circumstantial
要证明暗物质存在，就需要获得确凿的证据
To get conclusive proof
that dark matter exists,
难道我们不需要找到一些吗？
don't we need to find some?
如果我们能找到暗物质块[笑]
If we could find a lump
of dark matter [laughs],
嗯，在整个人类的历史中那将是
um, that would be one
of the greatest discoveries
in all of nature,
自然界中最伟大的发现之一，对吧？
in all of our history, right?