Canada’s CHIME telescope has directly mapped the earliest glow of hydrogen in the universe, opening a new window on dark energy. The results were published in The Astrophysical Journal.

The team detected the faint radio signal using only CHIME’s own data, without help from other telescopes. The feat shows the method works on its own.

Hydrogen’s glow traces how matter was spread across the young universe. By mapping it, scientists can measure how fast the universe expanded over time.

That expansion history holds clues to dark energy, the mysterious force pushing the cosmos apart. The new technique could offer a cheaper way to study it.

The researchers plan larger surveys in the coming years. They said the breakthrough turns CHIME into a powerful cosmology machine.

CHIME sits in a valley in British Columbia, Canada, where radio interference is low. Its four large antennas scan the whole sky overhead every day.