Published in Physics World, 25 Jul 2013
The South Pole Telescope (SPT) has made the first detection of a subtle twist in light from the cosmic microwave background (CMB), known as B-mode polarization. The signal, the existence of which has been long predicted, paves the way for a definitive test of inflation – a key theory in the Big Bang model of the universe.
“While this effect was fully expected, its detection is a milestone event in the use of the CMB to probe our universe,” says Chuck Bennett, a leading expert in CMB observation based at Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, US, who was not involved with the study. “It is solid research and I believe the result.” […]
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