This is a book review of The Cosmic Microwave Background: Historical and Philosophical Lessons by Slobodan Perović & Milan M. Cirković.
The Cosmic Microwave Background: Historical and Philosophical Lessons, by Slobodan Perovic and Milan M. Circovic (Cambridge University Press), 2024. Pp. 215, 25 x 17.5 cm. Price £39.99/$49.99 (hardbound, ISBN 978 1 108 84460 4).
As the subtitle states, this is a book on the history and philosophy of the CMB. However, it does not stray far from actual physics, and points are made with the help of concrete examples. The conventional narrative is that the CMB suddenly proved that the Steady State cosmological model was inviable. While the CMB is expected in the Big Bang scenario, it is not impossible in the Steady State theory, which is based on the idea that on a large-enough scale, the Universe looks the same at all places and at all times. Nevertheless, one would still like to have an astrophysical explanation for the CMB within the Steady State theory. The emphasis is on what the CMB can tell us about how science is (and has been) done rather than on the physics of the CMB itself, a basic knowledge of which is assumed. It is thus a good book for those with such knowledge who want to learn more about the history and philosophy of the field in the context of a concrete example.