Environment
All the Contents of the Universe, in One Graphic
All the Contents of the Universe, in One Graphic
Scientists agree that the universe consists of three distinct parts: everyday visible (or measurable) matter, and two theoretical components called dark matter and dark energy.
These last two are theoretical because they have yet to be directly measured—but even without a full understanding of these mysterious pieces to the puzzle, scientists can infer that the universe’s composition can be broken down as follows:
Component | Value | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dark energy | 68% | ||||
Dark matter | 27% | ||||
Free hydrogen and helium | 4% | ||||
Stars | 0.5% | ||||
Neutrinos | 0.3% | ||||
Heavy elements | 0.03% |
Let’s look at each component in more detail.
Dark Energy
Dark energy is the theoretical substance that counteracts gravity and causes the rapid expansion of the universe. It is the largest part of the universe’s composition, permeating every corner of the cosmos and dictating how it behaves and how it will eventually end.
Dark Matter
Dark matter, on the other hand, has a restrictive force that works closely alongside gravity. It is a sort of “cosmic cement” responsible for holding the universe together. Despite avoiding direct measurement and remaining a mystery, scientists believe it makes up the second largest component of the universe.
Free Hydrogen and Helium
Free hydrogen and helium are elements that are free-floating in space. Despite being the lightest and most abundant elements in the universe, they make up roughly 4% of its total composition.
Stars, Neutrinos, and Heavy Elements
All other hydrogen and helium particles that are not free-floating in space exist in stars.
Stars are one of the most populous things we can see when we look up at the night sky, but they make up less than one percent—roughly 0.5%—of the cosmos.
Neutrinos are subatomic particles that are similar to electrons, but they are nearly weightless and carry no electrical charge. Although they erupt out of every nuclear reaction, they account for roughly 0.3% of the universe.
Heavy elements are all other elements aside from hydrogen and helium.
Elements form in a process called nucleosynthesis, which takes places within stars throughout their lifetimes and during their explosive deaths. Almost everything we see in our material universe is made up of these heavy elements, yet they make up the smallest portion of the universe: a measly 0.03%.
How Do We Measure the Universe?
In 2009, the European Space Agency (ESA) launched a space observatory called Planck to study the properties of the universe as a whole.
Its main task was to measure the afterglow of the explosive Big Bang that originated the universe 13.8 billion years ago. This afterglow is a special type of radiation called cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR).
Temperature can tell scientists much about what exists in outer space. When investigating the “microwave sky”, researchers look for fluctuations (called anisotropy) in the temperature of CMBR. Instruments like Planck help reveal the extent of irregularities in CMBR’s temperature, and inform us of different components that make up the universe.
You can see below how the clarity of CMBR changes over time with multiple space missions and more sophisticated instrumentation.
What Else is Out There?
Scientists are still working to understand the properties that make up dark energy and dark matter.
NASA is currently planning a 2027 launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, an infrared telescope that will hopefully help us in measuring the effects of dark energy and dark matter for the first time.
As for what’s beyond the universe? Scientists aren’t sure.
There are hypotheses that there may be a larger “super universe” that contains us, or we may be a part of one “island” universe set apart from other island multiverses. Unfortunately we aren’t able to measure anything that far yet. Unravelling the mysteries of the deep cosmos, at least for now, remains a local endeavor.
Oil and Gas
Map: Oil and Gas Spills in the U.S. Since 2010
Oil and gas spills can be messy, but where are they most likely to occur? This graphic looks at oil and gas spills in the U.S. since 2010.

Mapped: Oil and Gas Spills in the U.S. Since 2010
The recent energy crisis has highlighted the integral role that hydrocarbons play in fueling the modern world, but these fossil fuels still come with their fair share of downsides.
Aside from the obvious climate impact they bring, one other downside in particular is spills, which can lead to ecological and economic damage. These can happen due to pipeline leaks, train derailments, or other industrial disasters.
This graphic from Preyash Shah provides a visual overview of every oil and gas spill in the contiguous U.S. since 2010. Data is tracked by the U.S. government’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
U.S. Oil and Gas Spills (2010‒2022)
The majority of spills that have occurred come mostly from crude oil, followed by petroleum products and gas. Note that this data covers the quantity of spills and not damages or volume.
Spills by Product Type | Portion of all U.S. Spills |
---|---|
Crude oil | 51% |
Petroleum products | 32% |
Diesel | 14% |
Gasoline | 13% |
Others | 5% |
Highly volatile liquids & flammable gas | 16% |
Liquefied petroleum gas / natural gas liquids | 8% |
Other highly volatile liquids | 6% |
Anhydrous ammonia | 2% |
Others | 3% |
Carbon dioxide | 2% |
Biofuel | 1% |
Crude oil, which makes up just over half of documented spills, is also one of the most costly. Contaminations can persist for years after a spill, and its impact on local mammals and waterfowl is particularly harsh.
This has been the case with the Deepwater Horizon spill (also known as the “BP oil spill”), which experts say is still causing harm in the Gulf of Mexico.
Other products with lots of spills include petroleum products such as diesel or gasoline, as well as liquefied natural gas or other volatile liquids. Interestingly, liquefied carbon dioxide can also be transported in pipelines, commonly used for carbon capture storage, but requires high pressure to maintain its state.
When looking at the location of spills, it’s clear that the South Central states have experienced the highest number of disasters. In contrast, the West Coast has had substantially less activity. However, this makes much more sense when looking at the dominant oil producing states, where Texas and surrounding neighbors reign supreme.
Rank | State | Oil & Gas Spills (2010-2022) |
---|---|---|
1 | Texas | 1936 |
2 | Oklahoma | 407 |
3 | Louisiana | 297 |
4 | California | 253 |
5 | Kansas | 208 |
6 | Illinois | 181 |
7 | Wyoming | 155 |
8 | New Jersey | 128 |
9 | New Mexico | 114 |
10 | North Dakota | 98 |
11 | Indiana | 93 |
12 | Minnesota | 83 |
13 | Ohio | 82 |
14 | Pennsylvania | 71 |
15 | Iowa | 66 |
16 | Missouri | 65 |
17 | Michigan | 56 |
18 | Colorado | 55 |
19 | Mississippi | 53 |
20 | Montana | 46 |
21 | Wisconsin | 42 |
22 | Alabama | 36 |
23 | Arkansas | 33 |
24 | Newbraska | 31 |
25 | Georgia | 28 |
26 | Virginia | 27 |
27 | North Carolina | 24 |
28 | Kentucky | 21 |
29 | South Carolina | 19 |
30 | Alaska | 16 |
30 | New York | 16 |
32 | Tennessee | 15 |
33 | South Dakota | 14 |
33 | Washington | 14 |
35 | Florida | 13 |
36 | Maryland | 11 |
37 | Utah | 9 |
38 | Idaho | 8 |
38 | Oregon | 8 |
40 | Hawaii | 7 |
41 | West Virginia | 6 |
42 | Massachesueuts | 3 |
43 | Conneticut | 2 |
43 | Maine | 2 |
43 | Nevada | 2 |
43 | Puerto Rico | 2 |
47 | Arizona | 0 |
47 | Delaware | 0 |
47 | New Hampshire | 0 |
47 | Vermont | 0 |
Of the 4,901 spills during this period, Texas accounts for 1,936 or roughly 40% of all oil and gas spills. This is followed by Oklahoma, which has had 407 spills and is one of the largest net exporters of oil and gas in the country.
What Causes Spills?
Oil and gas spills actually have a surprisingly long history, with one of the earliest dating back to 1889, when a spill was reported on the coast between Los Angeles and San Diego.
Causes have consisted primarily of weather, natural disasters, equipment and technological malfunction, as well as human error.
However, they only became a widespread problem around the halfway mark of the 20th century, when petroleum extraction and production really began to take off. This era also saw the emergence of supertankers, which can transport half a million tons of oil but therefore make the risk of spills even costlier.
In fact, the biggest spill off U.S. waters after the Deepwater Horizon disaster is the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, when a tanker crashed into a reef and 11 million gallons of oil spilled into the Pacific Ocean.
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