What if Planck's Universe isn't flat?

Inflationary theory predicts that the observable Universe should be very close to flat, with a spatial-curvature parameter vertical bar Omega(K)vertical bar less than or similar to 10(-4). The WMAP satellite currently constrains vertical bar Omega(K)vertical bar less than or similar to 0.01, and the Planck satellite will be sensitive to values near 10(-3). Suppose that Planck were to find Omega(K) not equal 0 at this level. Would this necessarily be a serious problem for inflation? We argue that an apparent departure from flatness could be due either to a local (wavelength comparable to the observable horizon) inhomogeneity, or a truly superhorizon departure from flatness. If there is a local inhomogeneity, then secondary cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies distort the CMB frequency spectrum at a level potentially detectable by a next-generation experiment. We discuss how these spectral distortions would complement constraints on the Grishchuk-Zel'dovich effect from the low-l CMB power spectrum in discovering the source of the departure from flatness. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevD.87.081301