Analysis of Spots in the COBE DMR First Year Anisotropy Maps

After the detection of structure in the microwave sky, the characterization of the observed features may be a useful guide to current and future experiments. The first year COBE-DMR sky maps were analyzed in order to identify the most significant hot and cold spots. The statistical significance of potential spots of cosmic origin was evaluated with Monte Carlo simulations. The area, eccentricity, and location of the most significant spots are given.