Modern ground-based microwave observatories offer a high-resolution perspective on the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and its secondary components, complementing galaxy surveys and the low resolution CMB data from the Planck and WMAP satellites. In this talk, I will introduce two such observatories, the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) and the Simons Observatory. The ACT collaboration is preparing to release its sixth public data release. This release, DR6, is the result from a 6-year-long survey covering 40% of the sky at arcminute resolution. DR6 will show a vast jump in sensitivity compared to previous ACT data releases and will deliver some of the strongest constraints on early universe physics, cosmological parameters and extensions to the Lambda-CDM model. I will go over the challenges that were overcome during the data reduction process and discuss the two pieces of DR6 that have already been released: a map of the spectral distortions due to galaxy clusters and the results on late-time structure formation from CMB lensing. Subsequently, I will introduce the upcoming DR6 results on the CMB power spectrum and primordial non-Gaussianity. I will conclude with an overview of the Simons Observatory, discussing its ongoing preparations and future results.
Host: Max Silva-Feaver