From: Spudboy100@aol.com
Date: Mon Mar 03 2003 - 23:15:04 MST
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2814947.stm
<<And he added: "We found something very bizarre; there is some extra, so far
unexplained structure in the CMB.
"We had expected that the microwave background would be truly isotropic, with
no preferred direction in space but that may not be the case."
Looking at the symmetry of the CMB - measures technically called its octopole
and quadrupole components - the researchers uncovered a curious pattern.
They had expected to see no pattern at all but what they saw was anything but
random.
"The octopole and quadrupole components are arranged in a straight line
across the sky, along a kind of cosmic equator. That's weird.
"We don't think this is due to foreground contamination," Dr Tegmark said.
"It could be telling us something about the shape of space on the largest
scales. We did not expect this and we cannot yet explain it." >>
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