Artist's impression of the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite,launched in November 1989. The satellite will study the structure & spectrum of the microwave background (the cold,faint echo of the radiation emitted during the Big Bang). The radiation was emitted when the universe was a hot fireball and initially had a spectrum characteristic of this temperature. As the universe expanded,the radiation cooled and now has a temperature of only 2.7 degrees Kelvin. Any fine structure found in the microwave background would indicate inhomogeneities in the primaeval fireball. These would have profoundly influenced the large-scale structure of the present universe | |
Lizenzart: | Lizenzpflichtig |
Credit: | Science Photo Library / NASA |
Bildgröße: | 3654 px × 4896 px |
Modell-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Eigentums-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Restrictions: | - |