Mohan Sundara Rajan, a science writer and author of numerous books on Space, believes that the next generation of scientists could possibly discover the secrets of dark energy and dark matter in the universe.
Speaking at the P Devadas Endowment Lecture and Meet the Scientist Programme at Periyar Science and Technology Centre on Saturday, Sundara Rajan briefly discussed how discovering the presence of dark energy and dark matter in the universe was the key to understanding it in its entirety.
“There is an experiment on the International Space Station to detect and study cosmic rays. In theory, if cosmic rays of certain energy rays are detected, then it could signal the existence of dark matter,” he said, elaborating on the various efforts currently being undertaken by scientists across the world in tracing and studying the entities.
Giving the audience a brief run-through on the early moments in the creation of the universe, he spoke of the existence of cosmic microwave background radiation, while alluding to the pioneering research work being done with the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment in the Atacama desert in Chile and also with the use of radio telescopes in Australia and South Africa.
Attempting to demystify the early expansion of the universe after the Big Bang theory, Sundara Rajan said that it was the result of fluctuations at the quantum level. “It is quite difficult to understand quantum mechanics, but once you do, the theory becomes a whole lot clearer”, he added.
Sundara Rajan also said that the Kepler spacecraft had so far succeeded in identifying around 2,700 planets other than the earth, possibly capable of supporting life.
