In 1964, Robert Wilson and Arno Penzias discovered a faint microwave signal from space, which was later linked to the Big Bang theory by physicists at Princeton. This discovery, which earned them a Nobel Prize, provided evidence for the theory that the universe began with a massive burst of energy. The cosmic microwave background they detected is a remnant of this event, and even today, a small percentage of TV static is attributed to these microwaves. Their work transformed cosmology into a data-driven science.

What fields were Robert Wilson and Arno Penzias experts in?

• Quantum Mechanics

• Particle Physics

• Optical Astronomy

• Radio and Microwave Astronomy

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What did Wilson and Penzias use to detect the faint microwave signal?

• A telescope

• A radio receiver

• A satellite

• A giant antenna

What did Wilson and Penzias initially expect to find when they pointed the antenna at an empty patch of sky?

• A new star

• Interference

• Nothing

• A strong signal

What did Wilson and Penzias initially think was causing the hiss?

• Solar Flares

• Cosmic Rays

• Pigeon Droppings

• Interference from Earth

What was the Princeton team trying to prove?

• The existence of black holes

• The age of the universe

• The Big Bang theory

• The speed of light

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NGSS.HS-ESS1-2

What did the Princeton team believe should still be detectable from the Big Bang?

• A faint hiss of microwaves

• Gamma rays

• Infrared radiation

• Visible light

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According to the Big Bang theory, what happened to the initial burst of light as the universe expanded?

• It stretched into longer wavelengths

• It disappeared

• It became visible light

• It turned into dark matter

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What did Wilson and Penzias' discovery win them?

• A Turing Award

• A Fields Medal

• A Pulitzer Prize

• A Nobel Prize

What percentage of the static on an old-fashioned TV set comes from microwaves produced in the Big Bang?

• 5%

• 0.1%

• 10%

• 1%

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NGSS.HS-ESS1-2

What did the discovery of the microwave background radiation make cosmology?

• A data-driven science

• A speculative science

• A theoretical science

• An obsolete science

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