Tag Archives: Big Bang

New, older age for the universe

This map shows the energy left over from shortly after the Big Bang, as mapped by the Planck space telescope. The average background temperature is about 2.7 degrees above the coldest possible temperature (known as absolute zero). Red spots are slightly warmer, while blue spots are slightly cooler. Astronomers hope this map can help them learn more about the history of the universe.

Telescope peers back to see the first light after the Big Bang

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Twinkle, twinkle oldest stars

Blazars are bright galaxies that send high-powered radiation jets directly toward Earth. They can be used to detect the light in the universe left over from every star that ever shone. In this image, the blazars are shown as green dots; the Milky Way glows orange in the middle.  Credit: NASA, DOE, Fermi LAT Collaboration

Astronomers find traces of ancient light in the activity of bright, distant galaxies

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Higgs — at last!

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Physicists capture the long-sought Higgs particle, which explains why other particles have mass

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