SCIENCE REPORT - Color of the Universe

SCIENCE REPORT
–
March 21, 2002: Color of the Universe

By George Grow

This is the VOA Special English SCIENCE REPORT.

What is the color of the universe? Astronomers¹ had not answered this question until two months ago. That is
when two American astronomers reported on their study of all the light in the universe. They said that the
universe would appear to the human eye to be a light greenish color, called turquoise².

Karl Glazebrook and Ivan Baldry of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland,
reported their finding in January. They presented research at a meeting of the American
Astronomical³ Society. They said that finding the color of the universe was not part of their
more serious scientific research. They did it for fun.

However, earlier this month, the scientists admitted to making a mistake. They said their

Before ..
.
finding was much more colorful than it should have been. They now say the light from our
universe is closer to white. It is more like a milky⁴ or creamy white color.

Their study attempted to show what people might see if they could observe the universe from
far away. The scientists found the average color by combining light from about two-hundred-
thousand star systems. Their information came from an observatory⁵ in New South Wales,
Australia.

The scientists gave a number value to the colors of the different star systems. Then they added
the numbers together and found the average measurement. The scientists used this average to ... after.
identify the color of the universe. They said it was a very pretty light green or turquoise color.
They called it “cosmic⁶ spectrum⁷ green.
”
Many newspapers and television stations reported their finding.

Other scientists and color engineers attempted to reproduce⁸ the result. Mark Fairchild of the Rochester Institute
of Technology in New York was the first person to identify a mistake. He discovered a mistake in the computer
software program used by the Johns Hopkins scientists.

When the mistake was corrected, the results changed. The new color of the universe is much less colorful. It is
very close to white.

The scientists have apologized for the mistake. They are now working with the Rochester Institute of Technology
to produce more images of the color of the universe.

They also asked for suggestions for a name for the new color of the universe.

This VOA Special English SCIENCE REPORT was written by George Grow.

 

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1 astronomers   

n.天文学者，天文学家( astronomer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Astronomers can accurately foretell the date,time,and length of future eclipses. 天文学家能精确地预告未来日食月食的日期、时刻和时长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings. 天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 turquoise   

n.绿宝石；adj.蓝绿色的

参考例句：

• She wore a string of turquoise round her neck.她脖子上戴着一串绿宝石。
• The women have elaborate necklaces of turquoise.那些女人戴着由绿松石制成的精美项链。

3 astronomical   

adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的

参考例句：

• He was an expert on ancient Chinese astronomical literature.他是研究中国古代天文学文献的专家。
• Houses in the village are selling for astronomical prices.乡村的房价正在飙升。

4 milky   

adj.牛奶的，多奶的；乳白色的

参考例句：

• Alexander always has milky coffee at lunchtime.亚历山大总是在午餐时喝掺奶的咖啡。
• I like a hot milky drink at bedtime.我喜欢睡前喝杯热奶饮料。

5 observatory   

n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台

参考例句：

• Guy's house was close to the observatory.盖伊的房子离天文台很近。
• Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day.格林威治天文台的职员们每天对大钟检查两次。

6 cosmic   

adj.宇宙的，广大无边的

参考例句：

• That is a cosmic law that must be respected.这是宇宙的法则必须遵守。
• This has all the appearance of a cosmic free lunch.这就产生了广泛的免费午餐。

7 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

8 reproduce   

v.生育，繁殖，复制，重做

参考例句：

• The machine can reproduce a key in two minutes.这机器能在两分钟内复制一把钥匙。
• The picture will reproduce well.这照片会印得很清楚。