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Scientists on the Dark Energy Survey have used observations of the smallest known galaxies to better understand dark matter, the mysterious substance that makes up 85% of the matter in the universe. The smallest galaxies can contain hundreds to thousands of times more dark matter than normal visible matter, making them ideal laboratories for studying this mysterious substance. By performing a rigorous census of small galaxies surrounding our Milky Way, scientists on the Dark Energy Survey have been able to constrain the fundamental particle physics that governs dark matter.

Just like we orbit the sun and the moon orbits us, the Milky Way has satellite galaxies with their own satellites. Drawing from data on those galactic neighbors, a new model suggests the Milky Way should have an additional 100 or so very faint satellite galaxies awaiting discovery.

From Astronomy, March 31, 2020: Astronomers have discovered 139 new minor planets orbiting the Sun beyond Neptune by searching through data from the Dark Energy Survey, which is led by Fermilab. The new method for spotting small worlds is expected to reveal many thousands of distant objects in coming years — meaning these first hundred or so are likely just the tip of the iceberg.

From WDRB, March 29, 2020: A study published earlier this month by astronomers at the University of Pennsylvania distinguished more than 100 new planets in our solar system, but estimates show there could be as many as 70,000. These trans-Neptunian objects were found in the data gathered by the Dark Energy Survey, led by Fermilab.

From EarthSky, March 29, 2020: Astronomers analyzed data from the Dark Energy Survey, led by Fermilab, to find over 100 new little worlds in the cold outer reaches of our solar system. These trans-Neptunian objects orbit in the cold outer reaches of our solar system, out beyond Neptune, taking hundreds of years to orbit the sun once.

From Physics World, March 24, 2020: Scientists using the first year of data from the Dark Energy Survey, which is led by Fermilab, establish that there is a correlation between the positions of gravitational lenses — deduced from the stretching of distant galaxies — and gamma-ray photons. A data comparison from gravitational lensing and gamma-ray observations reveals that regions of the sky with greater concentrations of matter emit more gamma rays.

From Forbes, March 16, 2020: Researchers using data from the Fermilab-led Dark Energy Survey have identified more than 300 trans-Neptunian objects — minor planets located in the far reaches of the solar system — including well over 100 new discoveries. The research pioneers a new technique that could help astronomers in the search for undiscovered planets — including the mysterious “Planet 9.”

From Event Horizon podcast, March 19, 2020: Fermilab scientist James Annis and John Michael Godier discuss neutrinos, dark energy, dark matter and upcoming cosmological surveys in this 30-minute interview.

From Medium, March 11, 2020: Astronomers in the Dark Energy Survey, which is led by Fermilab, report the discovery of 316 minor planets beyond Neptune. Of these, 139 were entirely unknown before this new study, while 245 were seen in earlier observations by DES.

From SLAC, Jan. 13, 2020: Matching up maps of matter and light from the Dark Energy Survey, hosted at Fermilab, and Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope may help astrophysicists understand what causes a faint cosmic gamma-ray glow.