A new paper suggests that the mysterious X17 subatomic particle is indicative of a fifth force of nature.
Physicists have long known of four fundamental forces of nature: gravity, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force.
Now, they might have evidence of a fifth force.
The discovery of a fifth force of nature could help explain the mystery of dark matter, which is proposed to make up around 85 percent of the universe’s mass. It could also pave the way for a unified fifth force theory, one that joins together electromagnetic, strong and weak nuclear forces as “manifestations of one grander, more fundamental force,” as theoretical physicist Jonathan Feng put it in 2016.
The new findings build upon a study published in 2016 that offered the first hint of a fifth force.
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