Latest news with #CLASS
Time of India
15-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
13-Billion-year-old ‘Cosmic Dawn' signal captured by ground-based telescope: A breakthrough in tracing the origins of universe
In a rare and remarkable scientific achievement, scientists have detected a 13-billion-year-old microwave signal from a period known as the Cosmic Dawn. It is a time just after the Big Bang when the first stars and galaxies began to form. What makes this achievement remarkable is that the signal was picked up not from space, but using Earth-based telescopes situated at high altitudes in the Andes mountains of northern Chile. The discovery was made by astrophysicists from the CLASS (Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor) project. The project is funded by the US National Science Foundation. These weak signals of polarised microwave radiation provide rare insights into the early universe and reveal how the first cosmic structures influenced light leftover from the Big Bang. This is the first time such a faint and ancient signal has been observed from the ground. The breakthrough was achieved by the team led by Professor Tobias Marriage of Johns Hopkins University (JHU). This major feat defies previous assumptions that these signals could only be detected using space telescopes, due to the many technological and environmental obstacles faced by ground observatories. What is the Cosmic Dawn that sent the 13-billion-year-old signal The Cosmic Dawn refers to the time period between roughly 50 million and one billion years after the Big Bang. This is the period when the first stars, galaxies, and black holes began to form. It was like a dawn for the Universe. Before this phenomena, the universe was in a dark, neutral state with no sources of light. The earliest stars also known as Population III stars ignited nuclear fusion and emitted intense ultraviolet radiation that lit up the universe and began the process of reionization. This radiation ionized the surrounding hydrogen gas which allow light to travel freely through space for the first time. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch vàng CFDs với sàn môi giới tin cậy IC Markets Tìm hiểu thêm Undo During this era, small, irregular galaxies started to assemble, and early black holes likely formed from the collapse of massive stars. These events fundamentally changed the nature of the cosmos. By studying light from this time, such as polarised microwave signals left on the cosmic microwave background, scientists can learn how the first luminous objects shaped the universe's structure. The Cosmic Dawn marks the universe's transition from darkness to light and holds key insights into how modern galaxies, including our own- Milky way, came to be. Why detecting this signal is so difficult and significant The microwaves that scientists are looking for from the Cosmic Dawn are extremely faint. It is about a million times weaker than regular cosmic microwave background radiation. These polarised microwave signals are measured in mere millimetres of wavelength and are easily drowned out by earthly interference such as radio broadcasts, radar signals, satellites, and even atmospheric conditions like humidity or temperature shifts. According to researchers, even under ideal conditions, detecting these signals requires highly sensitive and precisely calibrated instruments. CLASS telescopes were custom-designed for this task and strategically placed in high-altitude regions of Chile, where the thinner, drier air provides a clearer view of the universe. How the CLASS team overcome the odds: A first feat from Earth 'People thought this couldn't be done from the ground,' said Prof. Tobias Marriage. 'Astronomy is a technology-limited field, and microwave signals from the Cosmic Dawn are famously difficult to measure. Ground-based observations face additional challenges compared to space. Overcoming those obstacles makes this measurement a significant achievement.' The CLASS team addressed these challenges by cross-referencing their data with results from previous space missions, such as NASA's Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) and the European Space Agency's Planck telescope. By identifying and eliminating interference, they were able to isolate a consistent signal from the polarised light. It confirmed that it originated from the early universe. The polarised microwave light Light becomes polarised when it bounces off surfaces or particles, causing the waves to align in a particular direction. A simple example is sunlight reflecting off a car hood, which creates a glare—one that can be reduced with polarised sunglasses. Similarly, ancient cosmic light that interacted with early matter became polarised. 'Using the new common signal, we can determine how much of what we're seeing is cosmic glare from light bouncing off the hood of the cosmic dawn, so to speak,' explained Dr. Yunyang Li, one of the study's co-authors and a researcher affiliated with Johns Hopkins and the University of Chicago. New path to explore the origins of the universe The CLASS project has opened a powerful new window into understanding the origins of the universe. The study of these signals can help scientists to see how the first light sources interacted with matter. They can trace how early stars triggered the formation of galaxies. These processes shaped large-scale structures that still define the universe today. This research opens the door to new discoveries. It gives scientists a roadmap to explore the earliest and most mysterious parts of the universe without relying only on space missions. It proves that advanced ground-based technology, when combined with clever methodology and favourable locations, can rival even space telescopes in tracing the earliest chapters of cosmic history. This research validates the capabilities of Earth-based astronomy and paves the way for deeper studies into the birth of stars, the formation of galaxies, and the evolution of the universe itself.
Indian Express
12-06-2025
- Science
- Indian Express
Scientists detect 13 billion-year old signal from ‘Cosmic Dawn' using Earth-based telescopes
In what can be called a truly unique accomplishment, scientists seem to have detected a 13 billion-year-old signal using Earth-based telescopes. This feat allow them to see how the first stars impacted light emitted from the Big Bang. Astrophysicists measured polarised microwave light to create a clearer picture of what is known as Cosmic Dawn. They traced this by using telescopes high in the Andes mountains of northern Chile. Cosmic Dawn refers to the period roughly between 50 million to one billion years after the Big Bang, a time when the first stars, black holes, and galaxies were reportedly formed. The research led by Tobias Marriage, professor of physics and astronomy at Johns Hopkins University (JHU), is the first time ground-based observations have captured signals from the Cosmic Dawn. 'People thought this couldn't be done from the ground. Astronomy is a technology-limited field, and microwave signals from the Cosmic Dawn are famously difficult to measure,' Marriage was quoted as saying by the JHU website. 'Ground-based observations face additional challenges compared to space. Overcoming those obstacles makes this measurement a significant achievement,' he added. According to the official JHU website, cosmic microwaves are barely millimetres in wavelength and are very hard to detect. The signal from polarised microwave light is about a million times fainter, making it much more difficult to trace. Meanwhile, on Earth, broadcast radio waves, radar and satellites can drown their signal, and changes in the atmosphere, weather and even temperature can distort it. The researchers claimed that even under perfect conditions, measuring this type of microwave would need highly sensitive equipment. Scientists from the US National Science Foundation's Cosmology Larger Angular Scale Surveyor, or CLASS project, used telescopes that have been specifically designed to detect traces left by the first stars in the relic big bang light. This was previously only accomplished by technology deployed in space, such as the US National Aerospace and Space Administration Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) and European Space Agency Planck space telescopes. As part of the project, the researchers compared the CLASS telescope data with data from the Planck and WMAP missions. They identified interference and narrowed in on a common signal from the polarised microwave light. Polarisation is when light waves collide into something and scatter. 'When light hits the hood of your car and you see a glare, that's polarisation. To see clearly, you can put on polarised glasses to take away glare,' said author Yunyang Li, who was a PhD student at Johns Hopkins and then a fellow at the University of Chicago during the research. 'Using the new common signal, we can determine how much of what we're seeing is cosmic glare from light bouncing off the hood of the cosmic dawn, so to speak.'
NDTV
12-06-2025
- Science
- NDTV
Scientists Observe Light Of "Cosmic Dawn" With Telescope On Earth For The First Time Ever
Astronomers have used Earth-based telescopes to observe "Cosmic Dawn", which is the early period in the universe's history, around 800 million years after the Big Bang, when the first stars and galaxies formed, emitting light that ended the cosmic dark ages. This era was a significant milestone in the universe's evolution as massive stars and galaxies were formed and the universe's structure and composition were shaped. Scientists have used James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) observations of distant galaxies to get insights into the cosmic dawn. Computational models also help understand galaxy formation and evolution. "People thought this couldn't be done from the ground. Astronomy is a technology-limited field, and microwave signals from the Cosmic Dawn are famously difficult to measure," team leader and Johns Hopkins professor of physics and astronomy, Tobias Marriage, said in a statement. "Ground-based observations face additional challenges compared to space. Overcoming those obstacles makes this measurement a significant achievement," Marriage added. Cosmic dawn insights shed light on the universe's early stages, providing an understanding of the universe's origins. The scientists were able to get a new glimpse of Cosmic Dawn using the Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor (CLASS), which is an array of telescopes located high in the Atacama Desert region of Northern Chile. The main objective of CLASS is to observe the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB), which is a cosmic fossil left over from an event just after the Big Bang. The changes in the atmosphere, weather and temperature can distort the light, broadcast radio waves, radar, and satellites can access their signal on Earth. The light from Cosmic Dawn is extremely faint as the wavelength is in millimetres, which is obvious as it has travelled to us for 13 billion years and more. The signal from polarised microwave light is about a million times fainter. Polarisation means the orientation of oscillations or vibrations in a wave, such as light or electromagnetic waves. This can happen when light hits an object and scatters off it. "When light hits the hood of your car and you see a glare, that's polarization. To see clearly, you can put on polarized glasses to take away glare," said team member Yunyang Li, who was a PhD student at Johns Hopkins. "Using the new common signal, we can determine how much of what we're seeing is cosmic glare from light bouncing off the hood of the Cosmic Dawn, so to speak," added Yunyang, who was a fellow at the University of Chicago while this research was being conducte
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
'People thought this couldn't be done': Scientists observe light of 'cosmic dawn' with a telescope on Earth for the first time ever
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. For the first time, scientists have used Earth-based telescopes to peer back into the cosmic dawn — an era more than 13 billion years ago when light from the first stars began reshaping our universe. The residual light from this ancient epoch is millimeters in wavelength and extremely faint, meaning that although space-based observatories have been able to peer into it, the signal is drowned out by the electromagnetic radiation in Earth's atmosphere before ground-based telescopes can detect the primordial light. But now, by deploying a specially designed telescope, scientists at the Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor (CLASS) project have detected traces that the first stars left on the background light of the Big Bang. They published their findings June 11 in The Astrophysical Journal. "People thought this couldn't be done from the ground," study co-author Tobias Marriage, CLASS project leader and a professor of physics and astronomy at Johns Hopkins University, said in a statement. "Astronomy is a technology-limited field, and microwave signals from the Cosmic Dawn are famously difficult to measure. Ground-based observations face additional challenges compared to space. Overcoming those obstacles makes this measurement a significant achievement." The CLASS observatory sits at an altitude of 16,860 feet (5,138 meters) in the Andes mountains of northern Chile's Atacama desert. The telescope, which obtained its first light in 2016, is tuned to survey the sky at microwave frequencies. Besides enabling it to map 75% of the night sky, the telescope's unprecedented sensitivity lets it receive microwave signals from the cosmic dawn, or the first billion years of the universe's life. For the first 380,000 years after the Big Bang, the universe was filled with a cloud of electrons so dense that light couldn't travel across it. But our cosmos eventually expanded and cooled, and the electrons were captured by protons to form hydrogen atoms. Related: Astronomers discover the 1st-ever merging galaxy cores at cosmic dawn These hydrogen atoms not only enabled microwave-wavelength light to move freely — filling space with the cosmic microwave background (CMB) — but also, where it was dense enough, collapsed under gravity and ignited to form the first stars. The light from these stars then reionized pockets of unclumped hydrogen gas, separating their electrons so that some collided with light from the CMB, causing it to become polarized. The signal from this polarized portion of the CMB is a vital part of the cosmological puzzle; without it, our picture of the early universe remains muddy. And while efforts from past space-based telescopes, such as NASA's Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) and the European Space Agency's Planck space telescope, have filled in parts of this gap, their pictures contain noise and, being satellites, could not be tweaked and improved once deployed in orbit. RELATED STORIES —Atacama Telescope reveals earliest-ever 'baby pictures' of the universe: 'We can see right back through cosmic history' —'We had less than a 2% chance to find this': James Webb telescope uncovers baffling 'Big Wheel,' one of the most massive galaxies in the early universe —1st supernovas may have flooded the early universe with water — making life possible just 100 million years after the Big Bang "Measuring this reionization signal more precisely is an important frontier of cosmic microwave background research," co-author Charles Bennett, a physics professor at Johns Hopkins who led the WMAP space mission, said in the statement. To arrive at these observations, the researchers compared CLASS telescope data with that from the Planck and WMAP missions, narrowing down a common signal for the polarized microwave light. "For us, the universe is like a physics lab. Better measurements of the universe help to refine our understanding of dark matter and neutrinos, abundant but elusive particles that fill the universe," Bennett added. "By analyzing additional CLASS data going forward, we hope to reach the highest possible precision that's achievable."
USA Today
29-01-2025
- Health
- USA Today
Temporary pause on federal financial assistance programs worries Louisiana organizations
Temporary pause on federal financial assistance programs worries Louisiana organizations While CLASS, Healthy Living for All, will be greatly impacted as an agency by the Trump administration's temporary pause on grant, loan and other financial assistance programs at the Office of Management and Budget, executive director Ann Lowrey is more worried about the people that the non-profit serves. She said its operations and programs predominately are funded by federal grants to the state of Louisiana, and CLASS is a contractor or sub-recipient of the grants. "In January alone, CLASS helped house nearly 100 people living with HIV or AIDS. Without our assistance, many of these individuals are at risk of becoming homeless," she said, citing this as an example of one of the supportive services they provide. "There are many, many people who rely on these services for their survival," she said. She said CLASS provides services in three categories that rely on federal funding to varying degrees. Those services include "supportive services for people living with HIV; HIV prevention services that include HIV and STI testing, linkage to care or treatment at our facility; and preventative HIV services, including access to pre-exposure prophylaxis services; and Harm Reduction services that include alcohol and substance misuse groups and access to treatment options, syringe services and overdose prevention education and materials including Narcan." Linda Hutson, director of development and community relations at the Food Bank of Central Louisiana, said they have read the information that they have seen in the news, but have not heard anything officially or unofficially about their current funding streams or grants, so they don't know enough to make a comment at this time. Kitty Wynn, executive director of the Central Louisiana Homeless Coalition in Alexandria, said they decided to pause moving forward with some things because of the order. Central Louisiana Technical Community College released a statement to its students Tuesday afternoon regarding the executive order that read, 'We are closely monitoring recent federal actions as we receive the latest updates from national organizations and our legislative partners. The Department of Education has indicated that the temporary funding pause does not impact Federal Pell Grants, Direct Loans Under Title IV, HEA, Title I, IDEA, other formula grants, or assistance received directly by individuals. However, it may impact other programs. We are actively seeking clarification on how these changes will be implemented, and as we await further guidance and assessment, we remain focused on our mission to provide accessible education and workforce training that supports Louisiana's communities and economy.'
