Scientist Yuki Takahashi prepares to fill liquid helium into the BICEP (Background Imaging of Cosmic Extragalactic Polarization) telescope. The telescope measures the cosmic microwave background radiation emitted from the origin of the universe. As the universe has expanded, the radiation we observe from that time has cooled off to only three degrees above absolute zero. The telescope must operate at a colder temperature than what it is observing. To achieve the maximum sensitivity to the tiny fluctuations in this background radiation, the detectors are cooled to about 0.25 degree above absolute zero using a liquid helium refrigerator. To learn more about BICEP, visit: http://bicep0.caltech.edu/~bicep/bicep_front.htm