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Atacama Cosmology Telescope Issues Final Data Release, Confirms Planck-Like Hubble Value and Tightens Model Constraints

The final ACT release hands high-resolution polarization data to researchers for fresh tests of the Hubble tension.

Overview

  • The ACT Collaboration published three JCAP papers detailing DR6 maps, power spectra and likelihoods, and constraints on nonstandard cosmological models.
  • ACT’s CMB-based Hubble constant agrees with Planck using both temperature and polarization measurements, sharpening the discrepancy with local-universe estimates.
  • Analyses rule out about 30 leading extended-model proposals that aimed to resolve the Hubble tension.
  • DR6 delivers higher-resolution polarization maps of the cosmic microwave background than Planck, with overall observational capability matching the satellite’s benchmark.
  • With the mission concluded, the collaboration has made the full dataset public to enable independent studies and new approaches to the tension.