Whose instrument first detected the cosmic microwave background?
Quick Answer
Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson detected the cosmic microwave background in 1964 using a horn antenna at Bell Labs. Their accidental discovery supported the Big Bang model.
The Full Story
Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson were testing a radio antenna in New Jersey when they found a persistent microwave signal coming from all directions. After eliminating sources of noise, they realized they had detected the cosmic microwave background, the faint afterglow of the early universe. This discovery, announced in 1965, became one of the strongest pieces of evidence for the Big Bang. Penzias and Wilson received the 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Key Facts
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"The accidental discovery that proved the universe had a hot beginning"
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