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Published March 13, 2010 | Published
Journal Article Open

Gravitational lensing: a unique probe of dark matter and dark energy

Abstract

I review the development of gravitational lensing as a powerful tool of the observational cosmologist. After the historic eclipse expedition organized by Arthur Eddington and Frank Dyson, the subject lay observationally dormant for 60 years. However, subsequent progress has been astonishingly rapid, especially in the past decade, so that gravitational lensing now holds the key to unravelling the two most profound mysteries of our Universe—the nature and distribution of dark matter, and the origin of the puzzling cosmic acceleration first identified in the late 1990s. In this non-specialist review, I focus on the unusual history and achievements of gravitational lensing and its future observational prospects.

Additional Information

© 2010 The Royal Society. Free via Creative Commons: CC. One contribution of 17 to a Theme Issue 'Personal perspectives in the physical sciences for the Royal Society's 350th anniversary'. I acknowledge valuable discussions with my scientific colleagues Pedro Ferreira, Jean-Paul Kneib, Phil Marshall, Richard Massey, Jason Rhodes, Dan Stark and Tommaso Treu and their assistance in many aspects of the work described in this brief review. I also acknowledge generous financial support from the Royal Astronomical Society and the International Astronomical Union in enabling some of us to appropriately commemorate Eddington's historic expedition to Príncipe and Sobral during the International Year of Astronomy (see http://www.1919eclipse.org/ for details). Data supplement. Video of Wendy Barnaby interviewing Richard Ellis: http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/368/1914/967/suppl/DC1

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August 21, 2023
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