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MENTAL MODEL · M6010

Cosmic Microwave Background, CMB

Cosmic Microwave Background, CMB
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-28

CORE DEFINITION

The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB, also known as 3K background radiation) is the thermal radiation left over from the Big Bang in cosmology. In early literature, it was referred to as 'Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation' (CMBR) or 'relic radiation'. It is electromagnetic radiation that fills the entire universe, with characteristics identical to blackbody radiation at an absolute temperature of 2.725 K, and its frequency falls within the microwave range. The CMB is one of the cosmic background radiations and serves as the foundation of observational cosmology, as it is the oldest light in the universe, dating back to the epoch of recombination. With traditional optical telescopes, the space between stars and galaxies (the background) appears pitch black. However, using sensitive radio telescopes, a faint background glow can be detected, nearly identical in all directions and unrelated to any stars, galaxies, or other objects. The electromagnetic spectrum of this light is strongest in the microwave region. In 1964, American radio astronomers Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson accidentally discovered the CMB, a discovery based on research begun in the 1940s, and they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1978.

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The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB, also known as 3K background radiation) is the thermal radiation left over from the Big Bang in cosmology. In early literature, it was referred to as 'Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation' (CMBR) or 'relic radiation'. It is electromagnetic radiation that fills the entire universe, with characteristics identical to blackbody radiation at an absolute temperature of 2.725 K, and its frequency falls within the microwave range.

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The thermal radiation left over from the Big Bang, filling the entire universe and nearly uniform in all directions, is the oldest light in the universe and conclusive evidence for the Big Bang. As the background noise for all observations, it defines the 'baseline of the era'.

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Source support: Explicit

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    zh.wikipedia.orghttps://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%AE%87%E5%AE%99%E5%BE%AE%E6%B3%A2%E8%83%8C%E6%99%AFZH · Explicit
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