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How old is the universe? What is its shape? What is the composition of the universe?

Shaw Laureates in Astronomy 2010 Professor Charles L Bennett, Professor Lyman A Page Jr and Professor David N Spergel gave a lecture entitled "Taking the Universe's Baby Picture with WMAP" today (September 29) at the University of Hong Kong. In the lecture, they described how the cosmic microwave background observations helped them to measure the age, shape and composition of the universe precisely.

The Shaw Prize in Astronomy 2010 is shared by the three professors for their leadership of the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) experiment. Through observing the cosmic microwave background, the WMAP experiment has enabled precise determinations of the universe's shape, its composition and its age is 13.75 billion years (plus or minus 0.13 billion years). The WMAP measurements have had an enormous impact across astronomy, cosmology and physics.

About the Shaw Laureates:

Professor Charles L Bennett was born in 1956. He received a PhD in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1984. He is currently a Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the Johns Hopkins University and a Member of the United States National Academy of Sciences.

Professor Lyman A Page Jr was born in 1957. He received a PhD in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1989. He is currently the Henry DeWolf Smyth Professor of Physics at Princeton University and a Member of the United States National Academy of Sciences.

Professor David N Spergel was born in 1961. He received a PhD in Astronomy from Harvard University in 1985. He is currently the Charles A Young Professor of Astronomy and Chair of the Department of Astrophysical Sciences of Princeton University and a Member of the United States National Academy of Sciences.

For details of the Shaw Prize, please visit http://www.shawprize.org/en/index.php 

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