200 most important Astronomy topics - Sykalo Eugen 2023

The Planck 2018 Results

The Planck mission, launched in 2009, is a space observatory operated by the European Space Agency (ESA). It was designed to study the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the relic radiation left over from the Big Bang. The CMB is the oldest light in the universe, and it provides a window into the universe's early history.

In 2018, the Planck mission released its final data release, which included a wealth of new information about the universe. The data provided new insights into the universe's age, composition, and evolution.

The Age of the Universe

One of the most significant results from the Planck mission was a new estimate of the age of the universe. The previous estimate, based on observations from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) mission, was 13.7 billion years. The Planck mission's data, however, suggests that the universe is slightly older, at 13.8 billion years.

This small difference might not seem significant, but it has important implications for our understanding of the universe's evolution. A slightly older universe means that the first stars and galaxies formed slightly earlier than we previously thought.

The Composition of the Universe

The Planck mission's data also shed new light on the composition of the universe. The universe is made up of three main components: ordinary matter (atoms), dark matter, and dark energy. Ordinary matter makes up only about 5% of the universe, while dark matter makes up about 27%, and dark energy makes up the remaining 68%.

The new data from the Planck mission provided more precise measurements of the amount of each component. The results confirmed our understanding of the universe's composition, but they also revealed some interesting new insights.

For example, the Planck data showed that the amount of dark matter in the universe is slightly less than previously thought. This means that there is slightly less dark matter to account for the gravitational effects we observe in the universe. It's not clear what this means yet, but it could have implications for our understanding of the nature of dark matter.

The Evolution of the Universe

The Planck mission's data also provided new insights into the universe's evolution. The data confirmed our understanding of the universe's early history, but it also revealed some surprising new details.

For example, the data showed that the universe's expansion is slightly faster than previously thought. This means that the universe is expanding at a rate of about 73.3 kilometers per second per megaparsec (km/s/Mpc). This faster expansion rate could have implications for our understanding of the universe's ultimate fate.

The Planck data also provided new information about the universe's structure. The data showed that the universe's clumping of matter is slightly less than previously thought. This means that the universe is slightly more homogeneous than we previously thought.