Event
Astrophysics Seminar: Examining the CMB quadrupole anomaly using Planck PR3 data
Jahmour Givans (Princeton University)
![An image of Jahmour Givans](/sites/default/files/styles/max_325x325/public/2024-08/jahmour_givens-20210909-lb211217.jpg?itok=xCMgTC2a)
Observations of the large-angular-scale autocorrelation function and power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) over the last 30 years have consistently provided hints that our standard LCDM cosmological model may be inaccurate. One hint, of lower statistical significance, is that the temperature quadrupole falls far below LCDM predictions. In this talk, I present my recent work combining CMB temperature and polarization data from Planck's Public Release 3 to determine -- for the first time -- the joint probability of getting temperature and polarization quadrupoles as anomalous as we observe. I then discuss how attempts to resolve this anomaly by enhancing or suppressing superhorizon power fail to provide a significant resolution.