THE COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND-RADIATION AND COSMOLOGY

I review recent observational results on the fundamental properties of the cosmic microwave-background radiation, with special emphasis on t he findings of the COBE satellite. These include the present temperatu re of the radiation, T0 = 2.726 +/- 0.010 K, and the first convincing detection of angular variations in its intensity, at a level approxima tely 10(-5) on scales greater-than-or-equal-to 10-degrees. Then I anal yse the consequences of these observational results more generally for cosmology and gravitational physics.