3D printed cosmic microwave background tagged posts

3-D printed early universe. Credit: Image courtesy of Imperial College London

Researchers have created a 3D printed cosmic microwave background – a map of the oldest light in the universe — and provided the files for download. The cosmic microwave background (CMB) is a glow that the universe has in the microwave range that maps the oldest light in the universe. It was imprinted when the universe first became transparent, instead of an opaque fog of plasma and radiation. The CMB formed when the universe was only 380,000 years old – very early on in its 13.8 billion-year history.

The Planck satellite is making ever-more detailed maps of the CMB, which tells astronomers more about the early universe and the formation of structures within it, such as galaxies...