Related papers: LCDM: Triumphs, Puzzles and Remedies
The good agreement between large-scale observations and the predictions of the now-standard $\Lambda$CDM theory gives us hope that this will become a lasting foundation for cosmology. After briefly reviewing the current status of the key…
Both WMAP and Planck data show a significant odd-multipole preference in the large scales of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature anisotropies. If this pattern originates from cosmological effects, then it can be considered a…
Satellite galaxies of the Milky Way and of the Andromeda galaxy have been found to preferentially align in significantly flattened planes of satellite galaxies, and available velocity measurements are indicative of a preference of…
The majority of present efforts to constrain cosmological parameters with cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropy data employ approximate likelihood functions, the time consuming nature of a complete analysis being a major obstacle. We…
Despite the remarkable success of the $\Lambda$Cold Dark Matter ($\Lambda$CDM) cosmological model, a growing discrepancy has emerged (currently measured at the level of $\sim 4-6 \sigma$) between the value of the Hubble constant $H_0$…
Recent astronomical observations strongly indicate that the current Universe is undergoing an accelerated phase of expansion. The discovery of this fact was unexpected and resulted in the comeback of cosmological constant. The conception of…
Current cosmological tensions motivate investigating extensions to the standard $\Lambda$CDM model. Additional model parameters are typically varied one or two at a time, in a series of separate tests. The purpose of this paper is to…
Besides expanding anisotropically, the universe can also be anisotropic at the level of its (spatial) curvature. In particular, models with anisotropic curvature and isotropic expansion leads both to a $\Lambda$CDM-like phenomenology and to…
Like early-type galaxies, also nearby galaxy clusters define a Fundamental Plane, a luminosity-radius, and a luminosity-velocity dispersion relations, whose physical origin is still unclear. By means of high resolution N--body simulations…
The ellipticities and alignments of clusters of galaxies, and their evolution with redshift, are examined in the context of a Lambda-dominated cold dark matter cosmology. We use a large-scale, high-resolution N-body simulation to model the…
Recent years have brought strong observational evidences for the standard LCDM cosmological model. Cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropy and large scale structure (LSS) probes do not favour any extensions of the standard model.…
The recent robust and homogeneous analysis of the world's supernova distance-redshift data, together with cosmic microwave background and baryon acoustic oscillation data, provides a powerful tool for constraining cosmological models. Here…
I critically review a methodology of using clusters of galaxies as cosmological probes. The understanding of the abundances and spatial correlations of dark matter halos has been significantly advanced especially for a last few years.…
The recent three-year WMAP data have confirmed the anomaly concerning the low quadrupole amplitude compared to the best-fit \Lambda CDM prediction. We show that, allowing the large-scale spatial geometry of our universe to be…
Using the APM cluster data we investigate whether the dynamical status of clusters is related to the large-scale structure of the Universe. We find that cluster substructure is strongly correlated with the tendency of clusters to be aligned…
The recent Planck data on the power spectrum of temperature anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background marginally support deviations from the $\Lambda$CDM model at several multipoles. With a view towards current and forthcoming…
Measurements of CMB anisotropy and, more recently, polarization have played a very important role allowing precise determination of various parameters of the `standard' cosmological model. The expectation of the paradigm of inflation and…
Observational Cosmology has indeed made very rapid progress in recent years. The ability to quantify the universe has largely improved due to observational constraints coming from structure formation Measurements of CMB anisotropy and, more…
We propose a novel representation of cosmic microwave anisotropy maps, where each multipole order l is represented by l unit vectors pointing in directions on the sky and an overall magnitude. These "multipole vectors and scalars" transform…
The anomalous lack of large angle temperature correlations has been a surprising feature of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) since first observed by COBE-DMR and subsequently confirmed and strengthened by the Wilkinson Microwave…