--- title: "Physicists Say There May Be Entire Planets Made of Dark Matter" description: "There may be planets made up of dark matter with their own bizarre physics, a group of scientist argue in a new study: and they might know how to find them." date: "2023-03-27" modified: "2023-03-27" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/dark-matter-planets" categories: - "Astrophysics" - "Dark Matter" - "Space" tags: - "dark matter" - "Exoplanets" - "science" - "space" --- # Physicists Say There May Be Entire Planets Made of Dark Matter ![There may be planets made up of dark matter with their own bizarre physics, a group of scientist argue in a new study: and they might know how to find them.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Dark Memes A new planetary theory just dropped — and reader, it gets kind of dark. In a [not-yet-peer-reviewed paper](), physicists led by University of Wisconsin-Madison theoretical physicist Yang Bai declared that our current mode of exoplanet detection may in the future help Earth-bound astronomers detect entire worlds out there made of the mysterious substance scientists refer to as dark matter. The way we currently detect exoplanets, the paper notes, involves observing how the planet affects the light of its host star, because when those planets pass in front of our telescopes, it dims their stars' light just slightly. Using this same methodology, the team of scientists posits that if telescopes detect some disruption in a star's light that doesn't appear to follow the rules of regular exoplanets, they could turn out to be very exotic — what the researchers are calling "dark exoplanets," made entirely of dark matter. ## Macro Matter Dark matter is a theoretical material whose existence we can only infer by observation of its effects on other stuff, because we can't see or detect it the way we do typical or baryonic matter. Basically, the existence of large amounts of dark matter could explain why observations of the universe don't show it behaving quite the way it should. Something's gotta account for that matter discrepancy, and dark matter is the prevailing theory. While dark matter is usually discussed in the context of individual particles, this research focuses on another form: composite structures of dark matter that could exist on a "macroscopic" level. Per their calculations, these structures could have masses as large as planets. "A macroscopic dark matter state with its mass and/or radius similar to those of a planet will behave as a dark exoplanet if it is bounded to a star system," the paper's writers noted, "even if the object's underlying physics resembles something else entirely." Perhaps the most important thing about this kind of theory — which, we must remind you, has not yet passed the rigors of peer review — is that it hinges upon a substance that can't be seen or measured in any normal way. There are [some scientists](), in fact, who [don't believe]() in [its existence]() at all. Thus far, needless to say**,** no "dark exoplanets" have been detected, but this exciting theory suggests that there may be a pretty simple way to find them — if only scientists are willing to look. **More on dark matter:** [*Scientists Just Detected the Oldest Dark Matter Ever Observed*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()