Dark Matter - No longer 'dark'
For starters, let's address what "Dark Matter" means. When calculations began on orbital velocities of stars in the Milky Way and entire galaxies orbiting withing clusters, it was discovered mass was missing. A lot of it - around 85% or more. Without this missing mass objects are either moving too fast or are too light to be in their orbits and should fly apart. Moreover, all stars in the Milky Way from just outside the middle to its very edges are moving at the same speed. This is only possible if missing mass slowed the inner stars and was very thick at the perimeter.
As no method for detecting this missing mass was known, it was called "Dark Matter". It is also assumed that this matter would be so small it can pass through anything, or we would have already detected it. Recently, observing gravitational lensing (the way matter's gravity can bend light passing by it) has been used to calculate the density and location of dark matter. Here's a pic of a galactic cluster with dark matter superimposed as the blue ring and cloud in the middle.
What's dark matter, where's it come from and why's there so much of it?
It's actually called Hydrinos, a simplified form of hydrogen, and is created by stars and now in labs. Hydrogen, the simplest atom previously known, makes up about 75% of visible mass in the Universe and it's believed Hydrinos make up all the dark matter.
One method for creating Hydrinos is high speed collisions of Hydrogen atoms that also releases a great deal of energy. The Sun's corona, or hot 'atmosphere' above the Sun's surface, is hotter than the surface itself. Though there's been some guesses why, no credible reason has existed until spectral lines (specific wavelengths of light) emitted by Hydrinos created in labs matched unexplained spectral lines emitted from the Sun's corona. It's theorized that Hydrinos are created in the corona of stars, explaining the high temperatures and spectral lines.
As Hydrinos are smaller versions of hydrogen, so small they could pass through the space between a Helium atom's electrons and nuclei, they can evade almost all instrumentation.
But there are, of course, naysayers to Hydrino theory.
A major sticking point is, ridiculously, the physical definition and behavior of an electron.
-- Some may recall the model of a spark orbiting an atomic nuclei. That was replaced in the early 1900's with a mathematic probability model with fantastic 'quantum' overtones. It states that an electron exists simultaneously in several specific locations (lobes) around the nuclei at all times, and there's a varying chance of finding it. Like the previously mentioned 'Dark Energy' this model was more sociologically based than scientific and we've been stuck with it since.
Hydrinos expel this 'voodoo' model in place of a charged shell, or orbitsphere, around the nuclei. One charge (one electron) and the charge is evenly distributed. More, and you get 'hot spots' on the orbitsphere.
-- Another issue was the certainty that electrons cannot drop below their ground state, or lowest level of charge and lowest orbit. When an electron receives energy, it jumps to a higher orbit, than drops back - releasing that energy as a photon in a specific light wavelength. It always drops back to its ground state. Hydrinos, in specific circumstances, drop below Hydrogen's ground state and release specific spectral lines doing so. The size of the new 'Hydrino' orbit is measured as a fraction of Hydrogen's ground state orbit. Observations from 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, etc all the way to 1/137 have been made. Each time releasing more energy and getting smaller.
SFW? I don't care about physics, astophysics and don't know why I read this.
For the average individual, the biggest benefit here is in power generation. Tapping the energy by converting Hydrogen to Hydrinos is 200 times greater than required to split Hydrogen from water - and likewise produces 200 times the energy from pure Hydrogen than a fuelcell can.
You want green powerplants that could replace coal as a base load? This be it. To date, they've licensed non-exclusive rights to produce approximately 8,250 MW of electrical power to seven companies, including five utilities and two independent producers. You want a truely green answer for transportation? A version is also being developed for use in automobiles that would travel 200 times farther than a fuel cell on the same amount of hydrogen, or even make hydrogen on board by topping of with distilled water. I'd imaging the Navy would also be very interested in either of these techs. More info on Hydrinos available at:
http://www.blacklightpower.com/index.shtml