Brief
CHIME detects ancient hydrogen signal, opening new path to study dark energy
The CHIME array measured the faint radio emission of hydrogen from a 9‑billion‑year‑old epoch, a technique that could streamline dark‑energy studies.
By Felo News Desk · Published
For the first time, the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME) has captured the extremely faint radio glow of hydrogen gas from the distant universe using only its own observations, researchers reported on 9 October 2026.
What happened
CHIME, a radio telescope near Penticton, British Columbia, surveyed the entire northern sky and detected the combined 21‑centimetre emission from neutral hydrogen dating back roughly 9 billion years. The observation demonstrates that CHIME can map large‑scale hydrogen distribution without relying on external galaxy‑survey data.
What the reports add
The ScienceDaily release notes that this method allows astronomers to trace matter across space at a fraction of the cost of traditional galaxy surveys, which can run into millions of dollars and focus on hotter, denser regions where stars form. By measuring hydrogen’s own radio emission, CHIME can probe larger cosmic volumes and earlier epochs.
What was said
"Hydrogen is the most common element in the universe and the raw material from which stars form," co‑author Dr Arnab Chakraborty, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto, told ScienceDaily. "Its faint radio emission acts like a cosmic tracer, revealing how matter is distributed across space."
"This is a completely new technique for probing the cosmos, delivered by an instrument that was conceived, built and funded by Canadians," added Dr Mark Halpern, professor at the University of British Columbia and CHIME principal investigator.
How it came about
CHIME was originally designed to study fast radio bursts and the large‑scale structure of the universe. The project brings together researchers from the University of British Columbia, McGill University, the University of Toronto, the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory and partners such as Arizona State University. The new hydrogen‑mapping capability builds on earlier CHIME work that required cross‑matching with optical galaxy surveys, a step now bypassed by the instrument’s own data.
Key facts
- CHIME detected faint 21‑cm hydrogen emission from a 9‑billion‑year‑old epoch using only its own observations. (sciencedaily.com)
- The technique allows cosmologists to study dark energy without costly external galaxy surveys. (sciencedaily.com)
- CHIME is located near Penticton, British Columbia, and surveys the entire northern sky daily. (sciencedaily.com)
- Dr Arnab Chakraborty (University of Toronto) and Dr Mark Halpern (UBC) are co‑authors of the study. (sciencedaily.com)
Sources
- [1] sciencedaily.com — originally reported as “A 9-billion-year-old signal could help explain dark energy”
