This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21866464
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Planck satellite: Maps detail Universe's ancient light | Planck satellite: Maps detail Universe's ancient light |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A spectacular new map of the "oldest light" in the sky has just been released by the European Space Agency. | A spectacular new map of the "oldest light" in the sky has just been released by the European Space Agency. |
| Scientists say its mottled pattern is an exquisite confirmation of our Big-Bang model for the origin and evolution of the Universe. | Scientists say its mottled pattern is an exquisite confirmation of our Big-Bang model for the origin and evolution of the Universe. |
| But there are features in the picture, they add, that are unexpected and will require ideas to be refined. | But there are features in the picture, they add, that are unexpected and will require ideas to be refined. |
| The map was assembled from 15 months' worth of data acquired by the 600m-euro (£515m) Planck space telescope. | The map was assembled from 15 months' worth of data acquired by the 600m-euro (£515m) Planck space telescope. |
| It details what is known as the cosmic microwave background, or CMB - a faint glow of microwave radiation that pervades all of space. | It details what is known as the cosmic microwave background, or CMB - a faint glow of microwave radiation that pervades all of space. |
| Its precise configuration, visible in the new Planck data, is suggestive of a cosmos that is slightly older than previously thought - one that came into existence 13.82 billion years ago. | Its precise configuration, visible in the new Planck data, is suggestive of a cosmos that is slightly older than previously thought - one that came into existence 13.82 billion years ago. |
| This is an increase of about 50 million years on earlier calculations. | This is an increase of about 50 million years on earlier calculations. |
| The map's pattern also indicates a subtle adjustment is needed to the Universe's inventory of contents. | The map's pattern also indicates a subtle adjustment is needed to the Universe's inventory of contents. |
| It seems there is slightly more matter out there (31.7%) and slightly less "dark energy" (68.3%), the mysterious component thought to be driving the cosmos apart at an accelerating rate. | It seems there is slightly more matter out there (31.7%) and slightly less "dark energy" (68.3%), the mysterious component thought to be driving the cosmos apart at an accelerating rate. |
| Planck is the third western satellite to study the CMB. The two previous efforts - COBE and WMAP - were led by the US space agency (Nasa). The Soviets also had an experiment in space in the 1980s that they called Relikt-1. | Planck is the third western satellite to study the CMB. The two previous efforts - COBE and WMAP - were led by the US space agency (Nasa). The Soviets also had an experiment in space in the 1980s that they called Relikt-1. |
| The CMB is the light that was finally allowed to spread out across space once the Universe had cooled sufficiently to permit the formation of hydrogen atoms - about 380,000 years into the life of the cosmos. | The CMB is the light that was finally allowed to spread out across space once the Universe had cooled sufficiently to permit the formation of hydrogen atoms - about 380,000 years into the life of the cosmos. |
| It still bathes the Earth in a near-uniform glow at microwave frequencies, and has a temperature profile that is just 2.7 degrees above absolute zero. | It still bathes the Earth in a near-uniform glow at microwave frequencies, and has a temperature profile that is just 2.7 degrees above absolute zero. |
| But it is possible to detect minute deviations in this signal, and these fluctuations - seen as mottling in the map - are understood to reflect the differences in the density of matter when the light parted company and set out on its journey all those years ago. | But it is possible to detect minute deviations in this signal, and these fluctuations - seen as mottling in the map - are understood to reflect the differences in the density of matter when the light parted company and set out on its journey all those years ago. |
| The fluctuations can be thought of as the seeds for all the structure that later developed in the cosmos - all the stars and galaxies. | The fluctuations can be thought of as the seeds for all the structure that later developed in the cosmos - all the stars and galaxies. |
| Scientists subject the temperature deviations to a range of statistical analyses, which can then be matched against theoretical expectations. | Scientists subject the temperature deviations to a range of statistical analyses, which can then be matched against theoretical expectations. |
| This allows them to rule in some models to explain the origin and evolution of the cosmos, while ruling out a host of others. | This allows them to rule in some models to explain the origin and evolution of the cosmos, while ruling out a host of others. |
| The team that has done this for Planck's data says the map is an elegant fit for the standard model of cosmology - the idea that the Universe started in a hot, dense state in an incredibly small space, and then expanded and cooled. | The team that has done this for Planck's data says the map is an elegant fit for the standard model of cosmology - the idea that the Universe started in a hot, dense state in an incredibly small space, and then expanded and cooled. |
| At a fundamental level, it also supports an "add-on" to this Big Bang theory known as inflation, which postulates that in the very first moments of its existence the Universe opened up in an exponential manner - faster than light itself. | At a fundamental level, it also supports an "add-on" to this Big Bang theory known as inflation, which postulates that in the very first moments of its existence the Universe opened up in an exponential manner - faster than light itself. |
| But because Planck's map is so much more detailed than anything previously obtained, it is also possible to see some anomalies in it. | |
| One is the finding that the temperature fluctuations, when viewed across the biggest scales, do not match those predicted by the standard model. Their signal is a bit weaker than expected. | One is the finding that the temperature fluctuations, when viewed across the biggest scales, do not match those predicted by the standard model. Their signal is a bit weaker than expected. |
| There appears also to be an asymmetry in the average temperatures across the sky; the southern hemisphere is slightly warmer than the north. | |
| A third significant anomaly is a cold spot in the map, centred on the constellation Eridanus, which is much bigger than would be predicted. | A third significant anomaly is a cold spot in the map, centred on the constellation Eridanus, which is much bigger than would be predicted. |
| These features have been hinted at before by Planck's most recent predecessor - Nasa's WMAP satellite - but are now seen with greater clarity and their significance cemented. | These features have been hinted at before by Planck's most recent predecessor - Nasa's WMAP satellite - but are now seen with greater clarity and their significance cemented. |
| A consequence will be the binning of many ideas for how inflation propagated, as the process was first introduced in the 1980s as a way to iron out such phenomena. | A consequence will be the binning of many ideas for how inflation propagated, as the process was first introduced in the 1980s as a way to iron out such phenomena. |
| The fact that these delicate features are real will force theorists to finesse their inflationary solutions and possibly even lead them to some novel physics on the way. | The fact that these delicate features are real will force theorists to finesse their inflationary solutions and possibly even lead them to some novel physics on the way. |
| Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos | Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos |