Modern Cosmology

Based on lectures given in honour of Stephen Hawking's sixtieth birthday, this book comprises contributions from some of the world's leading theoretical physicists.

This is a textbook intended for students and researchers who wish to under­ stand the physics of standard "big bang" cosmology and how it is used to interpret the most recent observations. It is based on courses given over the last seven years to beginning graduate students at the University of Paris and to advanced undergraduates at l'Ecole Poly technique. Since the great major­ ity of these students did not intend to become professional cosmologists, I have emphasized subjects that should be of general interest. Progress in observations over the last ten years has been truly astounding and a new textbook might be justified simply to report on recent break­ throughs. The traditional successes of modern cosmology are well-known. Among these are the dynamical understanding of the universal expansion, the prediction of the cosmic microwave background radiation, and the calculation of the abundances of the light elements. To these we can add new observa­ tions that suggest that we are beginning the era of "precision cosmology.

This volume presents a comprehensive introduction to modern cosmology from an astrophysical viewpoint.