Birefringent Rydberg Dark Matter from Cosmic Dust

TL;DR

This paper proposes that water nanoclusters ejected from cosmic dust could constitute Rydberg baryonic dark matter, supported by recent astrophysical observations and suggesting new avenues for testing with space telescopes.

Contribution

It introduces a phenomenological model linking cosmic dust ejected water nanoclusters to Rydberg dark matter, supported by recent observational evidence.

Findings

Laboratory evidence of water nanocluster ejection from ice.

Absence of dark matter in galaxy NGC 1052-DF2.

Potential detection of dark matter interactions via cosmic microwave background birefringence.

Abstract

Water nanoclusters ejected to space from abundant amorphous water-ice-coated cosmic dust have been proposed to constitute Rydberg baryonic dark matter. This phenomenological model is now qualitatively supported by several recent observations: the laboratory-generated ejection of water nanoclusters from amorphous water-ice; the absence of dark matter in Galaxy NGC 1052-DF2; a recent study of dark matter in distant galaxies reporting the direct interaction of dark matter with galactic baryonic matter; the bullet cluster; and the birefringence of the cosmic microwave background. A link between Rydberg dark matter and dark energy and its relevance to quintessence are reviewed. The use of the James Webb Space Telescope to test this model further is suggested.