Gravitational waves unmask universe just after Big Bang
For first time, researchers see traces of superfast cosmic expansion
COSMIC SWIRL Gravitational waves generated during a period of cosmic inflation twirl light from the cosmic microwave background, as seen in this sky map from the BICEP2 telescope. The lines trace the alignment, or polarization, of photons released after the Big Bang; the line lengths show the light’s intensity. The colors indicate how strongly twisted the polarization is, both clockwise (red) and counterclockwise (blue).
BICEP2 Collaboration