The Cosmic Microwave Background to High Precision

• the CMB sky, normal contrast
• high-contrast (1000X): CMB dipole
• higher contrast (100,000X):
  • COBE (1995)
    WMAP (2003): raw, reduced
    COBE vs WMAP
    Planck: survey animation, one strip, all sky; Planck vs WMAP
  • fluctuations vs angular scale: WMAP power spectrum
  • cool movies courtesy WMAP, Planck
• physical origin of fluctuations
• polarization: from WMAP
• the lensed CMB: dark matter map from Planck

The Nuclear Age: Primordial Nucleosynthesis

Prelude

• baryons
• nuclei and nuclear forces

Big Bang Nucleosynthesis: Theory

• History
  • prelude: alpha beta gamma
  • Alpher, Herman, and Gamow arising from Ylem
• Radiation domination
• Particle ingredients
• Element formation:
  reaction network
  predictions: Schramm plot (Cyburt, Fields, & Olive 2003)