es2631 — Organisation Release
Across the fabric of spacetime: is the Universe truly dark?
6 November 2026
Join Dr Sveva Castello on 10 December on a journey to the boundaries of space and time.
How much of the Universe do we actually know? Very little, according to our observations: the ordinary matter around us accounts for only 5 % of the cosmos, while the remaining 95 % consists of two obscure ingredients. The first one is dark energy, which is required to explain the puzzling discovery that the Universe is expanding faster and faster. The second ingredient is a large portion of dark matter that is necessary to account for the observed pattern of galaxies. The properties of these two dark components are largely unknown and motivate us to look for cracks in our understanding of the cosmos. Could there be an issue in our description of gravity, the fundamental interaction on cosmological scales? In their quest for a complete understanding of the universe, scientists are using data from galaxy surveys to shed light on this dark cosmos.
In this Kosmischen Kino, Dr Sveva Castello from the Max Planck Institute of Astrophysics (MPA) will accompany us on a journey to the boundaries of space and time. She will show us how the distribution of galaxies creates ripples in the fabric of spacetime that can be used to test the properties of gravity and dark matter.
The event takes place on Thursday, 10 December at 19:00 in the planetarium of the ESO Supernova and will be held in English. Since this is a live talk, there will be no translation available. The ESO Supernova will remain open until the start of the event for visitors, who can explore the exhibition at any time or watch a planetarium show beforehand.
More information
What is Kosmisches Kino?
Kosmisches Kino (Cosmic Cinema) takes visitors into the breathtaking depths of space. Researchers from the ORIGINS Cluster of Excellence will accompany you on your journey through the cosmos with selected excerpts from planetarium films and an associated lecture.
Sit back and marvel. Want to know more? Just ask! Kosmisches Kino events take place under the dome of the planetarium. They offer all visitors, no prior knowledge required, an atmospheric insight into the world of research and provide you with new perspectives. At the end of the event, the researchers answer questions from the audience.
The lecture series Kosmisches Kino is a collaboration between ESO and the ORIGINS Cluster of Excellence and presents current research topics. The ORIGINS Excellence Cluster combines astrophysics, particle physics and biophysics to investigate the formation of the universe and the origin of life. The lectures address exciting questions that current research is investigating: Is there a common thread connecting the Big Bang with the origin of life? How do you measure radiation from space and its effect on humans? Where and how do planets and stars form? What is Dark Matter? What are the building blocks of life on Earth and do they exist elsewhere in space? These and many other questions will be addressed over the course of the event series.
Admission to the approximately one-hour-long evening event with planetarium visualisations, a live lecture and open discussion costs 6.50 Euros per person. Events are aimed at people aged 12 years and over.
Links
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Contacts
ESO Supernova
Garching bei München
Email: supernova@eso.org
About the Release
| Release No.: | es2631 |
