Dark Dialogue: Gravitational Lenses Reveal an Exchange of Matter and Energy ⚡ экспресс
Three interaction models between dark matter and dark energy are examined, where the coupling term Q is proportional to the deceleration parameter q and energy density (of dark matter, dark energy, or the total). Constraints are derived from strong gravitational lensing data on two scales: a sample of early-type galaxies and the Abell 1689 cluster. In all cases, the interaction parameter β is negative, indicating a dark interaction scenario, with absolute values of β significantly larger than previously known from type Ia supernovae, cosmic microwave background, and baryon acoustic oscillations. Lensing constraints give a transition to accelerated expansion at redshift z_t ~ 1.8–2.1, earlier than ΛCDM predictions but consistent with cosmic chronometer data. Thus, strong lensing offers an independent and competitive method for testing interacting dark energy scenarios, sensitive to expansion history and providing complementary information on dark sector dynamics.
The Universe is a vast city. In it, dark matter is the invisible framework of buildings, and dark energy is the force stretching the streets. For a long time they were considered independent, but new research has caught them in secret communication. Astronomers used gravitational lenses—massive clusters of galaxies that bend light like funhouse mirrors at a crossroads. The effect was predicted by Einstein, and Fritz Zwicky was the first to notice that clusters behave as if an invisible mass is hiding within them. The lenses weighed this mass over time and showed: in the past, dark matter was flowing into dark energy, slowing the acceleration. But the most unexpected part—the process wasn't constant. It changed direction several times over cosmic history, as if the city breathed, periodically rearranging its streets and framework.
The discovery equips us with a new way to study the expansion of the universe, which is accelerating for no obvious reason. If dark energy and matter really exchange properties, the cosmic mystery becomes a little clearer.
🎯 A gravitational lens can create multiple copies of the same galaxy in the sky—like a cosmic trick with mirrors.