Searching for MACHOs with microlensing
Baryonic matter, in the form of Machos (Massive Compact Halo Objects), might be a significant constituent of the dark matter that dominates the Milky Way. This article describes the experimental searches for Machos that exploit the gravitational microlens magnification of extragalactic stars. These surveys monitor millions of stars, in some cases every night, looking for magnification events. The early results from the surveys have yielded some spectacular events, and pose a significant new puzzle for galactic structure: toward the Large Magellanic Cloud we see fewer events than anticipated for a standard dark halo dominated by Machos, but toward the galactic bulge, the event rate is much higher than anticipated. This is a field of research that is ripe with opportunities for beginning (and senior) scientists.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 589176
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-JC--127205; CONF-9604231--; ON: DE98050755
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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