Archive: Dark Matter, the mysterious substance in space

Dark matter is a mysterious substance that makes up 27% of the universe, dwarfing the 5% of ordinary matter. In this 2015 archive episode, Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the discovery of dark matter, which began with Jan Oort's observation that galaxies moved faster than their visible mass could account for. The panel explores the leading theory that dark matter consists of WIMPs, weakly interacting massive particles that interact only through gravity. They also discuss how computer simulations have become essential for testing theories about the universe's structure.