Billion-light-year-wide cold spot in Universe is really nothing special.Byline: ANI Washington, September 24 (ANI): A new analysis by scientists has determined that a billion-light-year-wide cold spot in the universe, which was found in 2004, is merely a statistical artifact, and one that's really nothing special. Earlier, theories had abounded that it's a cosmic defect, a mysterious supervoid, or even an "imprint" of a parallel universe. "I think our findings bring into question all the hype about the cold spot," study co-author Dragan Huterer of the University of Michigan (body, education) University of Michigan - A large cosmopolitan university in the Midwest USA. Over 50000 students are enrolled at the University of Michigan's three campuses. The students come from 50 states and over 100 foreign countries. told National Geographic News. Huterer and colleague Ray Zhang took a new look at a well-known temperature map of the cosmic microwave background Noun 1. cosmic microwave background - (cosmology) the cooled remnant of the hot big bang that fills the entire universe and can be observed today with an average temperature of about 2. , or CMB Noun 1. CMB - (cosmology) the cooled remnant of the hot big bang that fills the entire universe and can be observed today with an average temperature of about 2. , the ancient and diffuse afterglow afterglow small amounts of light emitted by a phosphor after the stimulating radiation has ceased. Seen in x-ray intensifying screens and fluoroscopic screens. of the big bang. The map revealed the CMB has an average temperature of about 2.7 Kelvin (-455 degrees Fahrenheit, or -270 degrees Celsius). A few small patches are slightly warmer or cooler than average, but they vary by less than a microkelvin. But, initial studies of the CMB map revealed one region nestled in the constellation Eridanus that appears to be unusually cold-about 70 microkelvins cooler than average. The spot is the one place in the universe where the temperature deviates drastically. This was a startling star·tle v. star·tled, star·tling, star·tles v.tr. 1. To cause to make a quick involuntary movement or start. 2. To alarm, frighten, or surprise suddenly. See Synonyms at frighten. finding, since accepted models of the early universe say that the big bang created an initially uniform cosmic landscape, when viewed on large scales. Possible explanations have so far included a huge cloud that's soaking up CMB radiation, a gaping hole devoid of matter, or even the footprint of another universe that was once entangled en·tan·gle tr.v. en·tan·gled, en·tan·gling, en·tan·gles 1. To twist together or entwine into a confusing mass; snarl. 2. To complicate; confuse. 3. To involve in or as if in a tangle. with our own. Now, Huterer and Zhang are ready to throw cold water on these theories. They argue that the spot is no more than a byproduct of the statistical tool commonly used to examine CMB data, called the Spherical Mexican Hat Wavelets method. In their study, Huterer and Zhang analyzed the cold spot using two simpler statistical tools. Their new findings show that the cold spot's temperature deviation from the CMB average is, after all, no more or less than anywhere else in the universe. (ANI) Copyright 2009 Asian News International The Asian News International (ANI) agency provides multimedia news to China and 50 bureaus in India. It covers virtually all of South Asia since its foundation and presently claims, on its official website, to be the leading South Asia-wide news agency. (ANI) - All Rights Reserved. Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |
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