CMB: the isotropic part

The Cosmic Microwave Background, or CMB, is the only truly diffuse background, whereas the other backgrounds come from the integrated light (along the line of sight) of various sources. The CMB is now known, thanks to the FIRAS experiment above the COBE satellite, to have a nearly perfect blackbody spectrum. This proves to be quite constraining on early energy releases. We review the average spectrum of the CMB with respect to other backgrounds and the consequences regarding the history of the early Universe. To cite this article: F.R. Bouchet, J.-L. Puget, C. R. Physique 4 (2003). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]