Bianchi Type VII_h Models and the WMAP 3-year Data

Context. A specific example of Bianchi Type VIIh models, i.e. those including universal rotation (vorticity) and differential expansion (shear), has been shown in Jaffe et al. (2005) to correlate unexpectedly with the WMAP first-year data. Aims. We re-assess the signature of this model in the WMAP 3-year data. Methods. The cross-correlation methods are described in Jaffe et al. (2006a). We use the WMAP 3-year data release, including maps for individual years, and perform additional comparisons to assess the influence of both noise and residual foregrounds and eliminate potential non-cosmological sources for the correlation. Results. We confirm that the signal is detected in both the combined 3-year data and the individual yearly sky maps at a level consistent with our original analysis. The significance of the correlation is not affected by either noise or foreground residuals. Conclusions. The results of our previous study are unchanged.