Dark stuff that matters

here's a new story, maybe a teeny bit longer than usual, about the dark 'nests' where the most frenzied galaxies in cosmic history are born...

Herschel quantifies the dark matter threshold for starburst galaxies
How much dark matter is needed to trigger a starburst in the cosmic cribs where galaxies are born? A new study, based on data from ESA's Herschel Space Observatory, has revealed that dark matter halos with a mass larger than 300 billion times the Sun's are particularly efficient at igniting massive starbursts, as they house the most active star-forming galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers have discovered this key threshold by measuring small fluctuations in the Cosmic Infrared Background, the integrated diffuse emission produced by the dust from every galaxy that ever existed. These fluctuations trace the distribution of otherwise mostly unresolved star-forming galaxies and of the dark matter halos that enshroud them. More...

Image credits: The Virgo Consortium/Alexandre Amblard/ESA