LUX-ZEPLIN records unusual event in South Dakota dark matter search
Researchers at the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment in South Dakota just caught a strange particle interaction while searching for dark matter, which is believed to make up about 85% of the universe's mass but never actually seen.
The event happened in a part of their data where WIMPs, one of the strongest dark matter candidates, could show up.
LUX-ZEPLIN sees possible heavy WIMP
The signal looks like what scientists expect from WIMP interactions, and its high energy hints at something big, possibly a WIMP about 200 times heavier than a proton.
Still, there were no lower-energy signals that theory says should be there, so the team is digging through months of data and comparing notes with other labs worldwide.
This could be an exciting clue in figuring out what makes up the universe's missing mass.