Entering the universe 'dark'

The European Space Agency said the construction phase is about to start the mission of Euclid, with the aim of exploring the "dark" universe, ie, matter and dark energy.

Italy's Thales Alenia Space was selected as the main contractor, starting the full industrial phase of the project, according to AFP leading the press release of the European Space Agency (ESA).

Euclid is expected to help open the "dark" universe - (Photo: ESA)

Euclid will be launched in 2020, taking on the task of studying the role of dark matter in the universe.

Although invisible to Earth's telescopes, dark matter acts through gravity to engage in the key process of galaxy formation and slow the expansion of the universe.

In contrast, dark energy creates a force to defeat both gravity and is promoting the expansion of the universe as we witness it today.

Dark matter and dark energy are thought to account for 95% of the mass and energy of the universe, while ordinary matter, from star to planet, accounts for only a tiny fraction.

However, both are still unexplored mysteries and scientists hope to penetrate this dark curtain with the Euclid project .

Euclid consists of two scientific devices, one is a normal light camera and a near-infrared camera / spectrometer, will draw a 3D distribution map of two billion galaxies spread over a third of the sky to create a map of Dark matter in the universe, while studying the role of dark energy.