Related papers: Combining WMAP and SDSS Quasar Data on Reionizatio…

This paper focuses on cosmological constraints derived from analysis of WMAP data alone. A simple LCDM cosmological model fits the five-year WMAP temperature and polarization data. The basic parameters of the model are consistent with the…

We examine the constraints on high-redshift star formation, ultraviolet and X-ray pre-ionization, and the epoch of reionization at redshift z_r, inferred from the recent WMAP-5 measurement, tau_e = 0.084 +/- 0.016, of the electron…

New results on the anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and its polarization based on the first 3 years of data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) have revised the electron scattering optical depth downward…

We perform an analysis of the recent WMAP7 data considering physically motivated and viable reionization scenarios with the aim of assessing their effects on cosmological parameter determinations. The main novelties are: (i) the combination…

WMAP precision data enables accurate testing of cosmological models. We find that the emerging standard model of cosmology, a flat Lambda-dominated universe seeded by nearly scale-invariant adiabatic Gaussian fluctuations, fits the WMAP…

We study the constraints on reionization from five years of WMAP data, parametrizing the evolution of the average fraction of ionized hydrogen with principal components that provide a complete basis for describing the effects of…

We examine the constraints on the epoch of reionization (redshift z_r) set by recent WMAP-3 observations of tau_e = 0.09 +/- 0.03, the electron-scattering optical depth of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), combined with models of…

Large-scale polarization of the cosmic microwave background measured by the WMAP satellite requires a mean optical depth to Thomson scattering, tau_e ~ 0.17. The reionization of the universe must therefore have begun at relatively high…

We present new full-sky temperature and polarization maps in five frequency bands from 23 to 94 GHz, based on data from the first five years of the WMAP sky survey. The five-year maps incorporate several improvements in data processing made…

The recent discovery of a high optical depth tau to Thomson scattering from the WMAP data implies that significant reionization took place at redshifts z~15. This discovery has important implications for the sources of reionization, and…

A simple cosmological model with only six parameters (matter density, Omega_m h^2, baryon density, Omega_b h^2, Hubble Constant, H_0, amplitude of fluctuations, sigma_8, optical depth, tau, and a slope for the scalar perturbation spectrum,…

We present constraints on the reionization optical depth, $\tau$, obtained using several independent methods. First, we perform a non-parametric reconstruction of the reionization history, using Lyman-$\alpha$ constraints on the evolution…

(Abridged) The WMAP 5-year data strongly limit deviations from the minimal LCDM model. We constrain the physics of inflation via Gaussianity, adiabaticity, the power spectrum shape, gravitational waves, and spatial curvature. We also…

(Abridged) New full sky temperature and polarization maps based on seven years of data from WMAP are presented. The new results are consistent with previous results, but have improved due to reduced noise from the additional integration…

We present cosmological parameter constraints based on the final nine-year WMAP data, in conjunction with additional cosmological data sets. The WMAP data alone, and in combination, continue to be remarkably well fit by a six-parameter LCDM…

The recent observations of cross temperature-polarization power spectra of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) made by the WMAP satellite are in better agreement with a high value of the Thomson scattering optical depth \tau \approx 0.17.…

We present up-to-date constraints on the value of the fine-structure constant at the epoch of decoupling from the recent observations made by the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) satellite. In the framework of models we…

(Abridged) We present the angular power spectra derived from the 7-year maps and discuss the cosmological conclusions that can be inferred from WMAP data alone. The third acoustic peak in the TT spectrum is now well measured by WMAP. In the…

In light of the recent inference of a high optical depth to Thomson scattering, tau, from the WMAP data we investigate the effects of extended periods of partial ionization and ask if the value of tau inferred by assuming a single sharp…

We present full sky microwave maps in five bands (23 to 94 GHz) from the WMAP first year sky survey. Calibration errors are <0.5% and the low systematic error level is well specified. The 2<l<900 anisotropy power spectrum is cosmic variance…