Embargoed until 2 p.m. EST NSF PR 00-25 - April 26, 2000 This
material is available primarily for archival purposes. Telephone
numbers or other contact information may be out of date; please
see current contact information Cosmologists Reveal First
Detailed Images of Early Map of cosmic microwave background
Credit: produced by BOOMERANG project Map of Antarctica showing
the track of the balloon flight. Select image for larger version
With Mt. Erebus, a dormant volcano, in the background, the
Boomerang Telescope is readied for launch on its 10-day flight
around Antarctica. The Long Duration Balloon (LDB) facility at
Williams Field near McMurdo Station, Photo Credit: Peter West.
An international team of cosmologists has released the first
detailed images of the universe in its infancy. The images
reveal the structure that existed in the universe when it was a
tiny fraction of its current age and 1,000 times smaller and
hotter than it is today. Detailed analysis of the images is
already shedding light on some of