Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2005-11-22
Astron.Astrophys.464:479-485,2007
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
8 pages, 5 figures. v4.: Version to match the one to be published in A&A. 3-year WMAP data used. Presentation improved. New fi
Scientific paper
10.1051/0004-6361:20065585
Analyses of recent cosmic microwave background (CMB) observations have provided increasing indications for the existence of large scale anisotropy in the universe. Given the far reaching consequences of such an anisotropy for our understanding of the universe, it is important to employ alternative indicators in order to determine whether the reported anisotropy is cosmological in origin, and if so extract further information that may be helpful for identifying its causes. Here we propose a new directional indicator, based on angular-separation histograms of pairs of pixels with similar temperatures in the CMB map, which provides a measure of departure from statistical isotropy. The main advantage of this indicator is that it can be used to generate a sky map of large-scale anisotropies in the CMB temperature map, thus allowing a possible additional window into their causes. Using this indicator, we find a statistically significant (at 95% CL) preferred direction in the CMB data and discuss how it compares with other such axes recently reported. We also show that our findings are robust with respect to both the details of the method used, and the choice of the WMAP CMB maps employed, including the three-year CMB data released recently.
Bernui Armando
Mota B.
Reboucas Marcelo J.
Tavakol Reza
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