Engineering topics

Dawson, K. S. (ORCID:0000000205533805)

Publications and source records attributed to Dawson, K. S. (ORCID:0000000205533805).

5 records

DOE OSTI2026

DESI EDR: Calibrating the Tully–Fisher Relationship with the DESI Peculiar Velocity Survey

We calibrate the Tully–Fisher relation (TFR) with data from the DESI Peculiar Velocity (PV) Survey taken during the Survey Validation (SV) period of the DESI galaxy redshift survey. Placing spectroscopic fibers on the centers and major axes of spatially extended spiral galaxies identified in the 2020 Siena Galaxy Atlas using the DESI Legacy Surveys, we measure the rotational velocities at 0.33R 26 for 1155 (1128 + 27 dwarf) spiral galaxies observed during SV. Using 39 spiral galaxies observed in the Coma cluster, we find a slope for the TFR of −8.32 ± 0.15 AB mag in the r band, with a scatter about the TFR of 1.12 ± 0.03 AB mag. We calibrate the zero-point of the TFR using galaxies with independent distances measured using type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) via the cosmological distance ladder. From the SN Ia distances, we measure a zero-point of $-19.21^{+0.30}_{-0.31}$ AB mag in the r band. We produce a public catalog of the distances to these 1128 spiral galaxies observed during DESI SV as part of the DESI PV Survey with our calibrated TFR. This is, to our knowledge, the first catalog of TFR distances produced with velocities measured at a single point in the disk.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2026

A Unified Photometric Redshift Calibration for Weak Lensing Surveys Using the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument

The effective redshift distribution n(z) of galaxies is a critical component in the study of weak gravitational lensing. Here, we introduce a new method for determining n(z) for weak lensing surveys based on high-quality redshifts and neural-network-based importance weights. Additionally, we present the first unified photometric redshift calibration of the three leading stage-III weak lensing surveys, the Dark Energy Survey (DES), the Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) survey, and the Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS), with state-of-the-art spectroscopic data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). We verify our method using a new, data-driven approach and obtain n(z) constraints with statistical uncertainties of the order of $σ_z$ ~ 0.01 and smaller. Our analysis is largely independent of previous photometric redshift calibrations and, thus, provides an important cross-check in light of recent cosmological tensions. Overall, we find excellent agreement with previously published results on the DES Y3 and HSC Y1 data sets, while there are some differences on the mean redshift with respect to the previously published KiDS-1000 results. We attribute the latter to mismatches in photometric noise properties in the COSMOS field compared to the wider KiDS self-organizing map-gold catalog. At the same time, the new n(z) estimates for KiDS do not significantly change estimates of cosmic structure growth from cosmic shear. Finally, we discuss how our method can be applied to future weak lensing calibrations with DESI data.

Lange, J. U. [American Univ., Washington, DC (Unit↗

DOE OSTI2026

The Compilation and Validation of the Spectroscopic Redshift Catalogs for the DESI-COSMOS and DESI-XMM-LSS Fields

Over several dedicated programs that include targets beyond the main cosmological samples, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument collected spectra for 304,970 unique objects in two fields centered on the COSMOS and XMM-LSS fields. In this work, we develop spectroscopic redshift robustness criteria for those spectra, validate these criteria using visual inspection, and provide two custom value-added catalogs with our redshift characterizations. With these criteria, we reliably classify 212,935 galaxies below z < 1.6, 9713 quasars, and 35,222 stars. The resulting catalogs achieve a redshift purity exceeding 99.4% across all galaxy samples. As a critical element in characterizing the selection function, we provide the description of 70 different algorithms that were used to select these targets from imaging data. To facilitate joint imaging/spectroscopic analyses, we provide row-matched photometry from the Dark Energy Camera, Hyper-Suprime Cam, and public COSMOS2020 photometric catalogs. Finally, we demonstrate example applications of these large catalogs to photometric redshift estimation, cluster finding, and completeness studies.

Ratajczak, J. [Univ. of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT (↗

DOE OSTI2025

DESI Emission-line Galaxies: Clustering Dependence on Stellar Mass and [O II] Luminosity

We measure the projected two-point correlation functions of emission-line galaxies (ELGs) from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument One-Percent Survey and model their dependence on stellar mass and [O II] luminosity. We select ∼180,000 ELGs with redshifts of 0.8 < z < 1.6, and define 27 samples according to cuts in redshift and both galaxy properties. Following a framework that describes the conditional [O II] luminosity–stellar mass distribution as a function of halo mass, we simultaneously model the clustering measurements of all samples at fixed redshift. Based on the modeling result, most ELGs in our samples are classified as central galaxies, residing in halos of a narrow mass range with a typical median of ∼10 12.2−12.4 h −1 M ⊙ . We observe a weak dependence of clustering amplitude on stellar mass, which is reflected in the model constraints and is likely a consequence of the 0.5 dex measurement uncertainty in the stellar mass estimates. The model shows a trend between galaxy bias and [O II] luminosity at high redshift (1.2 < z < 1.6) that is otherwise absent at lower redshifts.

Cosmology↗

DOE OSTI2023

DESI Observations of the Andromeda Galaxy: Revealing the Immigration History of Our Nearest Neighbor

Abstract We present Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) observations of the inner halo of M31, which reveal the kinematics of a recent merger—a galactic immigration event—in exquisite detail. Of the 11,416 sources studied in 3.75 hr of on-sky exposure time, 7438 are M31 sources with well-measured radial velocities. The observations reveal intricate coherent kinematic structure in the positions and velocities of individual stars: streams, wedges, and chevrons. While hints of coherent structures have been previously detected in M31, this is the first time they have been seen with such detail and clarity in a galaxy beyond the Milky Way. We find clear kinematic evidence for shell structures in the Giant Stellar Stream, the Northeast Shelf, and Western Shelf regions. The kinematics are remarkably similar to the predictions of dynamical models constructed to explain the spatial morphology of the inner halo. The results are consistent with the interpretation that much of the substructure in the inner halo of M31 is produced by a single galactic immigration event 1–2 Gyr ago. Significant numbers of metal-rich stars ([Fe/H] > − 0.5) are present in all of the detected substructures, suggesting that the immigrating galaxy had an extended star formation history. We also investigate the ability of the shells and Giant Stellar Stream to constrain the gravitational potential of M31, and estimate the mass within a projected radius of 125 kpc to be log 10 M NFW ( < 125 kpc ) / M ⊙ = 11.80 − 0.10 + 0.12 . The results herald a new era in our ability to study stars on a galactic scale and the immigration histories of galaxies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗