The Axis of Evil revisited |
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| Authors: | Kate Land João Magueijo |
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| Institution: | Astrophysics, University of Oxford, Denys Wilkinson Building, Keble Road, Oxford OX1 3RH;Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, 31 Caroline Street North, Waterloo N2L 2Y5, Canada;Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, 60 St George Street, Toronto M5S 3H8, Canada;Theoretical Physics Group, Imperial College, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2BZ |
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| Abstract: | In light of the three-year data release from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe , we re-examine the evidence for the 'Axis of Evil' (AoE). We discover that previous statistics are not robust with respect to the data sets available and different treatments of the Galactic plane. We identify the cause of the instability and implement an alternative 'model selection' approach. A comparison to Gaussian isotropic simulations finds the features significant at the 94–98 per cent level, depending on the particular AoE model. The Bayesian evidence finds lower significance, ranging from 'substantial' at Δ(ln E ) ～ 1.4 to no evidence for the most general AoE model. |
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| Keywords: | cosmic microwave background |
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