Idaho Skies Transcript for February 20th and 21st

RACHEL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for February 20th and 21st. We’re your hosts, Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
George Smoot celebrates his 74th birthday on the 20th.

PAUL
Listeners might not be familiar with the name of George Smoot. But he’s an American astrophysicist who researched the cosmic microwave background, or CMB. When the universe formed, it began expanding from an incredibly dense and hot state. There was no matter at the time, everything was energy. And that energy was too hot and intense for subatomic particles to exist. 

RACHEL
As the universe expanded, it cooled to the point that subatomic particles could exist. The universe was only one millionth of a second old when subatomic particles finally became stable. However, there were no atoms as we known of them today. The universe was still too hot for protons, neutrons, and electrons to remain together. Every time a neutral atom tried to form, photons of energy knocked it apart.

PAUL
Those photons came from the background temperature of the universe. Everything with a temperature above Absolute Zero emits photons of light or radiation, and the universe is no different. It took another 380,000 years before the universe was cool enough for neutral atoms to exist. By then, the universe was a balmy 5,000 degrees.

RACHEL
The neutral atoms left their imprint in the cosmic background of the universe as tiny temperature fluctuations. Today the universe is only 5 degrees Fahrenheit above Absolute Zero, so the background radiation appears as microwaves. What Smoot found in 1992 was tiny temperature variations in this microwave background. Those slightly warmer and cooler patches in the CMB are among the strongest evidence for the Big Bang. 

PAUL
That’s Idaho Skies for the 20th and 21st of February.

RACHEL
Be sure to read our blog for additional information. It’s at idahoskies.blogspot.com.

For Idaho Skies this is Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
Dark skies and bright stars.