Slowing down the movement of stars by about 1 millisecond a year, scientists have found indirect evidence of dark matter for the first time.

CTOnews.com March 28-Scientists have discovered the first circumstantial evidence for the presence of large amounts of invisible dark matter around black holes. The discovery, if confirmed, would represent a major breakthrough in dark matter research.

Dark matter makes up about 85 percent of all matter in the universe, but because it doesn't interact with light, unlike the matter that makes up stars, planets, and everything else around us, astronomers can barely see it.

Fortunately, dark matter does interact through gravity. Researchers can infer the existence of dark matter by observing its gravitational influence on ordinary matter "proxies."

The team observed that the orbits of the two stars decayed or slowed slightly by about 1 millisecond per year as they moved around their companion black holes, numbered A0620-00 and XTE J1118+480.

The team concluded that the deceleration is the result of dark matter surrounding the black hole, which creates significant friction and drag as the star orbits its massive partner.

Simulations show that the observed orbital decay rate agrees with the predictions of friction models. CTOnews.com learned from the report that for binary systems without dark matter, the observed orbital decay rate is about 50 times higher than theoretical estimates of about 0.02 milliseconds per year.

More details: www.space.com/black-holes-may-be-swallowing-invisible-matter