First Direct Observation of First-Generation Starlight
TNRTB Archive – Retained for reference information
Astronomers have finally detected the light from the very first stars in the universe, confirming the scientific picture that supports RTB’s cosmic creation model. Results from the WMAP satellite revealed that the first stars formed 200 million years after the big bang. Consequently, the light from these objects will be redshifted to the infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Using the Spitzer Space Telescope and carefully subtracting known foreground light, a team of NASA astronomers detected clustering, which is believed to be the summed light from these first stars. The clustering signature confirms the WMAP age of these first-generation stars and also shows that they burned out very quickly—within a few million years. Now that light from these first stars has been detected, further technological advances will allow scientists to study their properties in more detail. RTB’s creation model predicts that results from those studies will confirm the work of a supernatural Designer in the development of the universe.
- A. Kashlinksy et al., “Tracing the First Stars with Fluctuations of the Cosmic Infrared Background,” Nature 438 (2005): 45-50.
- https://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v438/n7064/abs/nature04143.html
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