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Originally Posted by Ken G
There is also the related issue of observations that suggest the dark matter cannot be baryonic. An example of that is observations of the outputs of cosmic nucleosynthesis, the light element ratios.
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Observations interpreted in the context of the expectations of specific theory. The observations themselves do not rule out baryonic DM. Rather, cosmic nucleosynthesis in combination with the observed light element abundances is inconsistent with the DM being entirely baryonic. If observations in the future should show that in fact the DM is baryonic, then that would contradict our models of nucleosynthesis. Of course it is probably quite unlikely that the DM would turn out to be baryonic - the only reasonably viable baryonic DM candidate that is not absolutely ruled out would be molecular hydrogen (Pfenniger&Combes 1994).
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"The scientist who asks the right question reconnoiters a new patch of the unknown, and may, with luck, bring it within the constricted but expanding boundaries of the known."
~Timothy Ferris (The Red Limit) 1982
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