The first results from MAXIMA.

This talk reviews the first results from MAXIMA and the scientific implications of the combined MAXIMA and BOOMERANG data sets. The key piece of science is that both experiments independently observe the first acoustic peak in CMB angular power spectrum at a value l ∼ 200 and with a width which are compatible with a flat universe and inflation. Both experiments also observe a positive signal which is lower than that previously expected for the second acoustic peak region. A natural economical explanation is that the density of baryons is slightly but noticeably higher than that determined through Big Bang Nucleosynthesis theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]