|
NASA to "Map" Big Bang Remnant
to Solve Universal Mysteries
The Microwave Anisotropy Probe
(MAP) will journey into deep space on a voyage to explore some of the deepest
mysteries of the cosmos. Scientists hope to determine the content, shape history,
and the ultimate fate of the Universe, by constructing a full-sky picture of the
oldest light in the Universe.  Image
2
Image 3 How
MAP Moves The
MAP spacecraft spins like a top to capture light from every part of the sky. The
long conical horns on each side are shaped to receive photons that have been captured
by a set of reflecting mirrors. The MAP hardware and software were produced by
Goddard Space Flight Center and Princeton University.  Image
4
Image 5 
Image 6 
Image
7 Oldest
Light in the Universe - A Baby Picture of the Universe  
Image
8 Image 9 The
image on the right is a simulated view of what MAP might see after it completes
its mission. (The image on the left is COBE's view of the early universe from
1992.) There are tiny patterns in this light. These patterns result from the tiny
condensations that were the seeds for the eventual growth of galaxies. The patterns
in the light hold the key for understanding the history, the content, the shape,
and the fate of the Universe. Each cosmic scenario predicts a specific pattern
for this light - a cosmic fingerprint. MAP will make a full sky picture of this
light so will know the correct fingerprint of our Universe. By comparing fingerprints,
MAP will determine which cosmic scenario matches our Universe. Then we will know
the age of our Universe, how fast it is expanding, whether the expansion is accelerating,
the shape the Universe, the content of the Universe, and the ultimate fate of
the Universe. There is a wealth of information encoded in the patterns of the
oldest light. Ripples
resulting from tossing pebbles in a pond are affected by the size and number of
the pebbles and by the size and shape of the pond. By studying ripples in the
early Universe, scientists can gain a wealth of information about the makeup of
the early Universe. MAP
Reaches Second Lagrange Point (L2) 
Image
10 Image 11 
Image
12 Image 13 About
a month after its launch on a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral, FL, MAP will
swing past the Moon, boosting its orbit to the second Lagrange Point, or L2. This
is the first time a spacecraft will be in orbit around the L2 point. The Italian-French
mathematician Josef Lagrange discovered five special points in the vicinity of
two orbiting masses where a third, smaller mass can orbit at a fixed distance
from the larger masses. L2 is four times further than the Moon in the direction
away from the Sun and requires very little fuel to maintain orbit. After
a three month journey, MAP will begin to chart the faint microwave glow from the
Big Bang. It will take about 18 months to build up a full-sky picture and perform
the analysis. Scientific
Objectives of MAP - Journey to the Big Bang MAP
is designed to capture the afterglow of the Big Bang. Patterns imprinted within
this afterglow carry with them the answers to mysteries such as: What happened
during the first instant after the Big Bang? How did the Universe evolve into
the complex patterns of galaxies that we see today? Will the Universe expand forever
or will it collapse? According to the Big Bang theory, the Universe began about
14 billion years ago as an unimaginably hot and dense fog of light and exotic
particles. The Universe has since continuously expanded and cooled. The whole
Universe is bathed in the afterglow light from the Big Bang. The light that is
now reaching us has been traveling for about 14 billion years, thus allowing us
a look back through time to see the early Universe. Back
to Top | 
