文档介绍：1998Theywerebyfar,thelargestandmostdistantobjectsthatscientistshadeverdetected:loudssome15billionlightyearsfromearth.(71)Butevenmoreimportant,itwasthefarthestthatscientistshadbeenabletolookintothepast,:theUSNationalAeronauticsandSpaceAdministrationsCosmicBackgroundExplorersatellite—Cobe—eknownastheBigBang(thetheorythattheuniverseoriginatedinanexplosionfromasinglemassofenergy).(72)TheexistenceofthegiantcloudswasvirtuallyrequiredfortheBigBang,firstputforwardinthe1920s,,theuniverseburstintobeingasasubmicroscopic,unimaginablydenseknotofpureenergythatflewoutwardinalldirections,emittingradiationasitwent,,pressedbygravityintogalaxies,stars,plantsandeventually,,butastronomerswouldliketoseemuchsmallerhotspotsaswell,.(73)AstrophysicistsworkingwithgroundbaseddetectorsattheSouthPoleandballoonborneinstrumentsareclosinginonsuchstructures,andmayreporttheirfindingssoon.(74)Ifthesmallhotspotslookasexpected,thatwillbeatriumphforyetanotherscientificidea,,theuniverseexpandedinsizebymorethanatrilliontrilliontrilliontrillionfoldinmuchlessthanasecond,propelledbyasortofantigravity.(75)Oddthoughitsounds,cosmicinflationisascientificallyplausibleconsequenceofsomerespectedideasinelementaryparticlephysics,)但更为重要的是,这是科学家们所能观测到的最遥远的过去的景象,因为他们看到的是150亿年前宇宙云的形状和结构。72)巨大的宇宙云的存在,实际上是使二十年代首创的大爆炸论得以保持其宇宙起源论的主导地位所必不可少的。73)天体物理学家使用南极陆基探测器及球载仪器,正越来越近地观测这些云系,也许不久会报告他们的观测结果。74)假如那些小热点看上去同预计的一致,那