Janus58,
et al,
I have to say that, there is much of this I don't understand. There are, clearly, observations that suggest that something is causing the expansion of the "fabric of space." That the "fabric of space" is not "nothingness" - but real. That the mass of stelar object can twist and wrap both space and (by extension) time. Certainly the Gravity Probe B make a very convincing case for the Earth's mass dragging the "fabric of space" around with it as it rotates; twisting it as it goes. So, it is becoming a convincing argument that the motion of a mass through space alters the path of light, as well as the movement
(spin and velocity) alter the shape of the "fabric of space."
You would expect it to bend light by a degree that corresponds to it mass. And that's just the point; the galaxies bend the light more than what you would expect for the visible mass. But it is not only by how much the light is bent, but how it is bent. Just like you can determine the shape of a lens by the way it bends light, you can determine how the mass of a galaxy is distributed by the way it bends light. The manner in which light bends around galaxies matches what which would be produced if dark matter halo existed.
Why? How is really any different than the fact that ~98% of baryonic matter is made up of hydrogen and helium. You are making an argument of incredulity.
(COMMENT)
I agree, that a mysterious energy and matter could account for the observation. Yes, I agree. All the brilliant minds of the day essential support the idea. Just as they all agree that using Super Nova measurements
(Dr Saul Perlmutter), the universe is expanding, as if the "fabric of space"
(instead of being just elastic to give the impression of gravity as a force) was growing, giving the impression of an expanding universe.
Einstein may not have been able to unity gravity with the other forces, because it is not a force at all. But Einstein did make a very convincing argument that space and time work together. So if space, in the fabric of space, is both elastic and expanding, then it is also creating a change in time.
As you say, for which I cannot argue against, the consensus is that Dark Energy is the dominate "force" in the universe. But I tend to think differently. I think there are a lot of little pieces that have been observed, but are not put together correctly. We know that some galaxies spin, and we cannot begin to compute the effect that has, when we put it together with the orchestra of galaxies in its neighborhood that are also spinning and accelerating away from each other; as we observe the other galaxies from our own which is, itself spinning and accelerating. The combination of all these actions, like the little geek magnet toy on my desk that makes the various pieces spin and dance, takes a series of calculations that would choke a super computer.
Yes, I agree there is something unexplained. I don't necessarily believe that it is some new and exotic energy or particle. If we understand the Solar System, the local "fabric of space" and how the system with revolving parts that spin within, which itself is system that is spinning, then we might be able to extrapolate all the associated fields (how they interact and affect each other) to something greater (like a galaxy). The reason we call it Dark Energy is because
(as near as this layman can make-out) neither Quantum Mechanics or Relativity can explain it. So why suppose it is there?
(Occam's Razor)
But then, what do I know? (Nothing)
Most Respectfully,
R