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Fritz Zwicky Sticker
Too Fast To Be Lit | Physics
What holds a galaxy cluster together? In 1933 Fritz Zwicky found galaxies in the Coma cluster moving far too fast for the visible matter to hold. By the virial theorem, σ² ~ GM/R, so fast motions need much more mass than shines. He called the missing mass dunkle Materie and refined the case in 1937. A 3" pixel-art physicist sticker; equation, symbols and sources in the physics panel below.
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Details
Size3″ × 3″
3″ × 3″ kiss-cut sticker.
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The physics
In a gravitationally bound cluster, the galaxies' speeds are set by the total mass. Zwicky used their velocity spread to estimate the Coma cluster's mass and found it far larger than the light suggested.
Equations
| Symbol | Meaning | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| \(\sigma\) | line-of-sight velocity dispersion of galaxies | \(\mathrm{km/s}\) |
| \(G\) | gravitational constant | \(\mathrm{pc M_\odot^{-1} (km/s)^2}\) |
| \(M\) | gravitating mass within radius R | \(\mathrm{M_\odot}\) |
| \(R\) | characteristic cluster radius | \(\mathrm{pc}\) |
| \(M_{vir}\) | virial mass implied by \sigma and R | \(\mathrm{M_\odot}\) |
Sources
- Zwicky (1933) Die Rotverschiebung von extragalaktischen Nebeln, Helvetica Physica Acta 6, 110
- Binney & Tremaine, Galactic Dynamics, Ch. on clusters and the virial theorem
- Wikipedia, Dark matter / Fritz Zwicky (opens in a new tab)
Source Zwicky, F. (1933). Die Rotverschiebung von extragalaktischen Nebeln. Helvetica Physica Acta, 6, 110–127.