Astrophysicists have mapped the invisible universe.
They did it by tracking tiny distortions in distant galaxies.
The method is called weak gravitational lensing.
It shows how mass bends light across cosmic distances.
It also reveals where dark matter and dark energy reside.
Researchers analyzed subtle shape changes in far-off galaxies.
Those changes are caused by massive structures in between.
Light curves as it travels through space.
The team used data from the Dark Energy Survey.
The survey probes how the universe expands over time.
Its results were published open-access in a companion paper.
Scientists examined more than 270 million galaxies.
They measured how matter clumps across vast regions of the sky.
The findings support the standard Lambda-CDM cosmology model.
That model explains the universe’s structure and evolution.
It links dark matter, dark energy, and cosmic growth.
A major boost came from the DECADE project.
DECADE stands for Dark Energy Camera All Data Everywhere.
It expanded earlier surveys well beyond their original boundaries.
According to a University of Chicago report, the project added thousands of square degrees.
Many images were originally taken for other purposes.
Yet they proved crucial for precision cosmology.
The expanded data set more than doubled measured galaxy shapes.
It also helped resolve tensions with cosmic microwave background predictions.
Studying galaxy shapes and redshifts reveals mass through curved light.
Chihway Chang noted the power of archival images.
They enable weak lensing without specialized surveys.
Together, DECADE and the Dark Energy Survey now cover one-third of the sky.
For the first time, fine details of dark matter and dark energy can be explored.
Researchers worldwide are using the public catalog.
They are studying dwarf galaxies and refining mass maps.
The results confirm how cosmic structures grow.
They match predictions from standard cosmology.
They also show the lasting value of archival data.
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