Everything we can see, from our bodies to celestial bodies, is made up of matter: particles like atoms that have mass and take up space. But, matter as we know it can’t explain everything that happens in the universe. Since the early 20th century, scientists have known we’re missing something big: dark matter. This mysterious matter that can’t be seen has been impossible to study until now. Join U-M physicist Bjoern Penning in his quest to study dark matter with the new LUX-ZEPLIN dark matter detector. Dive deeper into the science of dark matter by visiting our new experimental gallery, UN/EARTH.

Museum@Home is issued twice a month. The Family Edition is issued on the first Wednesday of the month, and the Adult Edition on the third Wednesday.  

Stay curious!

Expert Expo: Scientist Spotlight

Seeing the Invisible—Dark Matter

Audience: Teens and Adults
Grades: 9-12+
Duration: 5 minutes

Join us in celebrating the recent installation of the LUX-ZEPLIN Dark Matter Detector, a sophisticated piece of underground equipment supported by U-M physicist Bjoern Penning and other U-M researchers. How does it study dark matter? What has the detector found so far? Join us in the search for dark matter!

Read the full article

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Still in the dark about dark matter?  Visit the museum to learn about the LUX-ZEPLIN detector by visiting UN/EARTH, the new exhibition in our Experimental Gallery on view from March 27, 2023 through January 2, 2024. Then, join Bjoern Penning and other experts during this Saturday’s Saturday Morning Physics for a presentation on the subject.

UN/EARTH
March 17, 2023 - January 2, 2024

Featuring work by Gina Gibson, UN/EARTH explores science and art from a mile underground. Located in the former Homestake gold mine in Lead, South Dakota, the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) houses experiments that give us a better understanding of the universe. The location—deep underground—provides a near-perfect environment for experiments that need to escape the constant bombardment of cosmic radiation, which can interfere with the detection of rare physics events. Built in collaboration with the University of Michigan, the LUX-Zeplin is the world’s most sensitive dark matter experiment. SURF also hosts experiments in biology, geology and engineering

Gina Gibson is an internationally exhibiting artist and professor of Graphic Design at Black Hills State University. In 2019, Gibson became the first artist in residence at the Sanford Underground Research Facility. Gibson's work celebrates the search deep below the surface for beauty in the old and new, the light and dark, and the known and unknown.

UN/EARTH was developed in collaboration with the U-M Department of Physics, the Sanford Underground Research Facility and Black Hills State University.

The Experimental Gallery is on the Lower Level, connected to the People & the Planet gallery.

Exhibits

Upcoming Events

Saturday Morning Physics

UN/EARTH - Science and Art from a Mile Underground
Saturday, March 18, 2023
10:30–11:30 a.m. 
170 & 182 Weiser Hall
500 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109

Parking is available at the Church Street Parking Structure for $6.00/car with only credit cards accepted.

In this special presentation, Bjoern Penning will introduce the LUX-Zepplin experiment, and Gina Gibson will describe her creations that celebrate research deep below Earth’s surface discovering beauty in the old and new, the light and dark, and the known and unknown.

About Saturday Morning Physics

In 1995, the University of Michigan Department of Physics began sharing some of the latest ideas in the field with the public in the Saturday Morning Physics lecture series.

Designed for general audiences, the lectures are an opportunity to hear physicists discuss their work in easy-to-understand, non-technical terms.

Planetarium & Dome Theater

March 2023
Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays
11:30 a.m.   Sea Monsters
12:30 p.m.   Sky Tonight
 1:30 p.m.    Mars: One Thousand One
 2:30 p.m.    Sky Tonight

Planetarium & Dome Theater Shows