Cosmic Microwave Background Flashcards, test questions and answers
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What is Cosmic Microwave Background?
The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) is a faint glow of electromagnetic radiation that fills the entire Universe, and is one of the most important pieces of evidence for the Big Bang Theory. The CMB was first detected by two American physicists in 1964, Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson, who were conducting experiments with a radio antenna at Bell Labs in New Jersey.The CMB has its origin in the hot early Universe; approximately 380,000 years after the Big Bang. As the Universe expanded and cooled, photons were able to travel freely through space for longer distances before interacting with matter. This allowed them to reach us here on Earth today as microwave radiation. Because this radiation has been travelling across space for billions of years without interacting with anything else, it carries with it very valuable information about what our Universe was like at its birth. Analysis of the spectrum of this cosmic background radiation can offer us insights into many aspects of cosmology such as dark energy, dark matter and inflationary theory; all topics which are still active areas of research today. The data gathered from studying this original cosmic energy also allows scientists to test some fundamental physical constants such as speed of light or Newton’s gravitational constant – all without ever leaving Earth. In addition to being an invaluable tool for understanding cosmology, this ancient light also provides us with a stunning visual reminder that we are part of something much larger than ourselves – an expanding universe full of secrets just waiting to be uncovered. So take a moment next time you look up at night sky and remember that you are looking out into a vast sea filled with ancient light – our Cosmic Microwave Background.