Dark energy, a mysterious substance thought to be speeding up the expansion of the Universe is really there, according to a team of astronomers at the University of Portsmouth and LMU University Munich.
After a two-year study led by Tommaso Giannantonio and Robert Crittenden, scientists conclude that the likelihood of its existence stands at 99.996 per cent. Their findings are published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Professor Bob Nichol, a member of the Portsmouth team, said: "Dark energy is one of the great scientific mysteries of our time, so it isn't surprising that so many researchers question its existence.
"But with our new work we're more confident than ever that this exotic component of the Universe is real -- even if we still have no idea what it consists of."
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