Dark Energy

• What observations led to the proposal of Dark Energy? Typically in science, you do not come up with an extension of your theory or propose a new hypothesis unless new data contradicts existing ideas. In other words, why did scientists begin proposing that there was a new thing we call Dark Energy and why is it called Dark Energy?
• What other hypothesis exist for explain the observations you listed in part #1 if any?
• What is currently known about Dark Energy?
• What are some of the current unknowns of Dark Energy?
• What future experiments are being done that can shed light on Dark Energy?
• In light of all of this, what is your personal opinion on Dark Energy and its validity as a scientific explanation?

Dark Matter

• What observations led to the proposal of Dark Matter? Typically in science, you do not come up with an extension of your theory or propose a new hypothesis unless new data contradicts existing ideas. In other words, why did scientists begin proposing that there was a new particle or type of matter that got named Dark Matter?
• What other hypothesis exist for explain the observations you listed in part #1 if any?
• What is currently known about Dark Matter?
• What are some of the current unknowns of Dark Matter?
• What future experiments are being done that can shed light on Dark Matter?
• In light of all of this, what is your personal opinion on Dark Matter and its validity as a scientific explanation?