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Dark Matter and Dark Energy - What are They ?

 

July 11, 2025

With the development of larger and more advanced telescopes, astronomers for some reason have decided to pose something new or puzzling about something they are calling “dark matter” or “dark energy”.

Anyone versed in Physics or Engineering - or better yet - versed in both Physics and Engineering knows what matter is, and knows what energy is.  It is no grand mystery to the educated scientist what matter and energy are about and what it can do and not do.  So why are astronomers trying to pose something new and mysterious called “dark matter” when the educated person knows “darn well” there is really no more to the subject than is already known ?

It could be that the astronomers making the claim of a mysterious dark matter are not astrophysicists - they are only astronomers - and that could make a difference.  Or, they somehow became bored with some mis-adapted routine and consequently invented a  fictitious topic hoping to enliven their careers, or otherwise gain their selves outside attention.  I don’t really know.

Whatever the motive, this article does not debunk the topic of dark matter nor dark energy.  In fact, it verifies these entities all the more, and even more definitely.  What it does debunk is that these are not new discoveries nor new topics - not at all - it is something we already knew from a long time ago.

Begin with some basics.  Everything we see in outer Space through a telescope is either emitting light or reflecting light.  That’s something to think about.  Stars emit light.   Everything else reflects light.  There are events associated with stars that also emit light, such as emission nebulae (from an exploding star) or the tail  of a comet (chemical interaction with a star) but it is all due to a star.

The other type of light is reflected light, and that’s how we see our planets - from the light reflected by the Sun (which is also a star).  When an asteroid gets close enough, we will see that too due to reflected light from the Sun.


            

 Light emitted by a star.                       Light reflected off a planet.

 

If it is not emitting light (such as a star) it can only be seen if it is reflecting light. Emitted light and reflected light: The only two ways anything can be seen.  Anywhere.  Anytime.

Now, what do we know about something that is dark in color, such as black, and what if this black object has a non-reflective surface, such as matte or flat black ?

If you were to place a sample piece of coal or dark slate rock which is nearly or entirely black with a flat or matte surface (non-reflective) against a hillside twenty or thirty meters away in full sunlight, you will not see the piece of slate rock but the silhouette about it against the grassy hillside (which does reflect light).  Now place a piece of black matte paper behind the slate rock and you will no longer see the silhouette of the slate rock such that its existence seems to disappear.  The black matte paper represents the infinite dark sky and the non-reflective slate rock is an object in Space you cannot see.  The slate rock exists but is not visible to the eyes.  This is dark matter.

The example uses non-reflective slate rock, but in outer Space the objects can be any size or form of non-reflective matter, including dust or gas.  Matter which does not emit light and is non-reflective will not be seen.  This explains dark matter, but is only drawing upon the basic science of emitted and reflected light, and surfaces with a low index of reflectivity (R), or no reflectivity at all.  Conversely, flat or matte black surfaces have a high coefficient of light absorption (α), absorbing nearly 100% of incident light.

What about dark energy ?  Well, any astrophysicist knows that everything in Space undergoes some type of relative motion, which origins can be explained by the Big Bang Theory.  If all matter is in motion, then it is all subject to Kinetic Energy (KE =  ½mv2). Therefore, all matter is subject to energy, whether seen or not seen.  And energy is energy, whatever form.  The forms of energy may vary (heat, electrical, nuclear, sound, etc) but they are all Energy, and energy can change from one form to another.  Some examples are sound that is absorbed and changes to heat, or heat expansion in a turbine causing motion or kinetic energy.  There are many examples that demonstrate the change of energy from one form to another.3  But that is not the point here since we have already given an account that all matter in motion has kinetic energy.  Our argument to explain “dark energy” is actually quite simple, and again, it only requires a basic science explanation.

There is really no mysterious “dark matter” nor any mysterious “dark energy”.  It is explained by basic science principles we have known since the time of Newton and Bernoulli.

This debunks any new discoveries regarding such “dark entities” of matter or energy in the realm of Space.  But by no means does it demean the wonder or mystery of Space, nor its continued exploration, nor scientific reasoning leading to actual discovery. This is where I believe these comrades have missed the whole point.  You do not need to invent a fictitious subject to encourage the mystery of discovery, or exploration, or scientific wonder.  It exists all around you, all of the time.  You just have to open your mind and realize it.

Quoting English poet William Blake:

 "To see a World in a Grain of Sand, And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,  
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand, And Eternity in an hour."

 

 

1. Other known ways of detecting matter in Space include infrared detection (heat energy) or X-rays, both of which require a form of electromagnetic wave energy for detection.  Cold barren rock (e.g., an asteroid) and even dust will not emit electromagnetic energy and are null to EM detection.  (Unseen dark matter).

2. Since all mass and matter are subject to gravity, all the unseen mass in the universe will cause gravitational effects that we didn't initially account for.  The unseen mass explains the extra gravitational forces thought to be a mystery, but simply explained as mass and matter we didn't see due to the low indices of reflection of certain objects and dust.

3. Although energy can transform from one form to another - this is all it can do.  Energy cannot be created nor destroyed and is called the Law of Conservation of Energy.  To emphasize this fact, it is also stated as the First Law of Thermodynamics.  It can be ultimately speculated, however, that all energy was created during the Big Bang - but then energy may have existed as Potential Energy before the Big Bang within the "dense kernel" of a "singularity".  The Law of Conservation of Energy then rules all the way to the far reaches of time.

4.  In reality, unseen dark matter will most likely have a very low index of reflection (fraction of a percent), which when combined with astronomical distances, accounts for why it can't be seen.  Light intensity,  whether emitted or reflected, diminishes according to the square of distance, or  I = k (1/d2).  It is possible spaceships travelling outside the Solar System can first detect dark matter by sonar, then be equipped with a flood light (and telescope) to eventually see the dark material.