What is the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) radiation?
a) Radiation from distant galaxies
b) The afterglow of the Big Bang
c) Emission from black holes
d) Reflected light from stars
Who first discovered the CMB radiation?
a) Edwin Hubble
b) Albert Einstein
c) Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson
d) Stephen Hawking
In which year was the CMB radiation discovered?
a) 1929
b) 1965
c) 1990
d) 2003
What is the approximate temperature of the CMB radiation today?
a) 0 K
b) 2.73 K
c) 100 K
d) 273 K
The CMB radiation is strongest in which part of the electromagnetic spectrum?
a) Gamma rays
b) X-rays
c) Microwaves
d) Ultraviolet
What was the original purpose of the radio antenna used by Penzias and Wilson when they discovered the CMB?
a) Observing distant galaxies
b) Studying cosmic rays
c) Detecting satellite signals
d) Measuring radio noise
Which satellite provided the first detailed map of the CMB radiation?
a) Hubble Space Telescope
b) COBE (Cosmic Background Explorer)
c) Voyager 1
d) Kepler Space Telescope
Which space mission improved the resolution of the CMB map after COBE?
a) Planck
b) WMAP (Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe)
c) Spitzer
d) Chandra
Which space telescope provided the most detailed map of the CMB radiation?
a) Planck
b) Hubble
c) James Webb
d) Chandra
The CMB radiation provides strong evidence for which cosmological theory?
a) Steady State Theory
b) Big Bang Theory
c) Plasma Cosmology
d) String Theory
Why is the CMB radiation nearly uniform in all directions?
a) The universe was perfectly smooth at its origin
b) It has been stretched by cosmic inflation
c) It is absorbed by intergalactic dust
d) It is affected by gravitational waves
What do the small temperature fluctuations in the CMB indicate?
a) The presence of dark matter
b) The seeds of galaxy formation
c) The acceleration of the universe
d) The end of cosmic inflation
What physical process created the CMB radiation?
a) Nuclear fusion in early stars
b) The decoupling of photons from matter
c) The collapse of black holes
d) Supernova explosions
How long after the Big Bang did the CMB radiation form?
a) Immediately
b) About 380,000 years
c) About 1 million years
d) About 10 billion years
Which fundamental force played a major role in forming the CMB radiation?
a) Strong nuclear force
b) Electromagnetic force
c) Gravitational force
d) Weak nuclear force
What is the “surface of last scattering”?
a) The edge of the observable universe
b) The moment photons were able to travel freely
c) The boundary between dark matter and normal matter
d) The outermost layer of a black hole
Which theory explains the initial rapid expansion of the universe that affected the CMB?
a) Cosmic inflation
b) General relativity
c) String theory
d) Quantum mechanics
What causes the tiny temperature fluctuations observed in the CMB?
a) Quantum fluctuations during inflation
b) Black hole mergers
c) Solar radiation interference
d) Galactic collisions
Why does the CMB appear slightly redshifted?
a) The expansion of the universe
b) Absorption by interstellar dust
c) Gravitational lensing
d) Cosmic rays scattering
Which observational evidence confirms that the CMB is a remnant of the Big Bang?
a) Its nearly perfect blackbody spectrum
b) The presence of neutrinos
c) The discovery of exoplanets
d) The abundance of heavy elements
Which scientist predicted the existence of the CMB radiation before it was discovered?
a) Albert Einstein
b) George Gamow
c) Carl Sagan
d) Isaac Newton
What does the Sachs-Wolfe effect describe in the CMB?
a) The polarization of light
b) The redshift caused by gravitational potential wells
c) The presence of cosmic rays
d) The formation of galaxies
What is the primary challenge in studying the CMB?
a) Atmospheric interference
b) The presence of foreground radiation
c) The distance of observation
d) Lack of suitable instruments
What is one of the main goals of studying the CMB?
a) To measure the universe’s expansion rate
b) To discover new planets
c) To detect gravitational waves from merging black holes
d) To find the edge of the universe
What is B-mode polarization in the CMB related to?
a) Primordial gravitational waves
b) Cosmic ray interactions
c) Dark matter halos
d) Black hole radiation
How does dark matter influence the CMB?
a) It creates temperature fluctuations
b) It absorbs CMB radiation
c) It shifts the frequency of CMB photons
d) It has no effect on the CMB
What shape does the CMB suggest for the universe?
a) Flat
b) Spherical
c) Hyperbolic
d) Torus-shaped
