One of the most compelling pieces of evidence for the universe’s origin through the Big Bang is the cosmic microwave background. This is essentially an echo made up of radiation that is scattered across the entire universe. Scientists are able to detect this radiation by using specialized equipment to analyze microwave radiation. Through these studies, scientists have been able to learn about the first moments of the universe because the cosmic microwave background is a remnant from that time. While the study of this picture of the early universe involved a progression of experiments, the actual discovery of the cosmic microwave background happened by accident by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson in 1965.

Since the 1960s, human understanding of the universe has expanded. The development of space travel in the 1960s and beyond has led to countless discoveries, images, and sounds from different parts of the solar system and greater universe.

Space nicely lends itself to poetry. Space is full of mystery: It is vast and endless, full of almost mythical structures and bodies, and it has inspired people since the beginning of human history. Smith’s focus on the sounds of space, though, is unique because most writers tend to focus on the

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