Science
NASA's Hubble Spots Nearly Invisible Ghost Galaxy Made of 99 Percent Dark Matter
Astronomers have discovered CDG-2, one of the most enigmatic galaxies ever observed, located 300 million light-years away in the Perseus cluster. Composed of approximately 99 percent dark matter, this ultra-faint object was detected through an innovative technique that searched for clustered groupings of globular star clusters rather than starlight.
Key Takeaways
- CDG-2 is 300 million light-years away and composed of approximately 99% dark matter
- Detected by searching for grouped globular clusters rather than starlight — a novel technique
- Four globular clusters account for 16% of all visible light in the entire galaxy
- Hydrogen gas was likely stripped by gravitational interactions in the dense Perseus cluster
- Discovery suggests many more invisible dark-matter-dominated galaxies may be hiding in plain sight
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