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We compute the three-point temperature correlation function of the COBE Differential Microwave Radiometer (DMR) first-year sky maps to search for non-Gaussian temperature fluctuations. The level of fluctuations seen in the computed correlation function are too large to be attributable solely to instrument noise. However, the fluctuations are consistent with the level expected to result from a superposition of instrument noise and sky signal arising from a Gaussian power law model of initial fluctuations, with a quadrupole normalized amplitude $Q_{rms-PS} = 17 \mu$K and a power law spectral index $n$ = 1. We place limits on the amplitude of intrinsic three-point correlations with a variety of predicted functional forms.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration/Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC) is responsible for the design, development, and operation of the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). The COBE program is supported by the Astrophysics Division of NASA's Office of Space Science and Applications.
