Planck captures a view of the entire Universe
Screenshot via Chromoscope.net
Last year, Planck, the European Space Agency's "time machine," was launched into space to scan the sky and record images for astronomers to study, potentially revealing the secrets to how the universe formed. Now, the first all-sky image has been delivered, giving us the most detailed microwave map of the sky. It illustrates the oldest light in the universe, originating around 13.7 billion years ago.
The European Space Agency reports, "From the closest portions of the Milky Way to the furthest reaches of space and time, the new all-sky Planck image is an extraordinary treasure chest of new data for astronomers."
Looking at the image, the center line across the middle main disc of our Galaxy, and the mottled colors at the top and bottom of the image are the "cosmic microwave background radiation," or, the oldest light in the universe, dating back to the Big Bang. Studying these images viewed at different wavelengths can give astronomers information as to how the universe as we know it formed, showing us what space was like just after the Big Bang, before our planets and stars existed.
"This is the moment that Planck was conceived for," says ESA Director of Science and Robotic Exploration, David Southwood. "We're not giving the answer. We are opening the door to an Eldorado where scientists can seek the nuggets that will lead to deeper understanding of how our Universe came to be and how it works now. The image itself and its remarkable quality is a tribute to the engineers who built and have operated Planck. Now the scientific harvest must begin."
Chromoscope.net has an interactive map that allows you to see what the universe looks like across all wavelengths, from gamma ray to radio. You can literally see every part of the universe, zooming in and out and around space.
Planck will continue to map the Universe through 2012, completing a total of four all-sky scans.
Here's a video of inside Planck, which aids the study of the relic radiation from the Big Bang:
