Is light what we think of as dark matter?

AI Thread Summary
Light has gravity and is abundant in space, but it does not explain dark matter or dark energy, which are fundamentally different phenomena. Dark matter contributes to gravitational effects on a large scale, yet lacks direct physical evidence. Theories about dark matter include it being a weakly interacting particle or the result of gravity from a parallel universe. Despite various plausible ideas, there remains no conclusive evidence to support any specific theory. The discussion highlights the ongoing mystery surrounding dark matter and the need for further research.
jeik
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Since light has gravity, and there is an abundance of it in any given space (this is easily observable by being at anyone spot in space with objects around you), would it be possible to explain what 'dark matter' seems to be?
 
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no, we can see light(radio, ir, visual, etc) and so we can account for its energy contribution as well. dark matter is something else that's contributing to gravity but outside of the gravitational effect that dark matter has on the large scale, we have no physical evidence that this stuff is even there (afaik)
some people think its a weakly interacting particle with a large mass
other people think its gravity leaking in from another universe that is parallel to us separated from us by some distance in a higher dimension
there's many more ideas all plausible still but sadly no evidence :(

i'd give these sites a quick read
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_matter
http://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/what-is-dark-energy/
 
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