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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

DESI DR2 Reference Mocks: Clustering results from UCHUU ELGs and QSOs

High-redshift galaxy clustering provides a powerful probe of the growth of structure, testing models of dark matter, dark energy, and galaxy formation during the epoch when the Universe was rapidly evolving. Emission line galaxies (ELGs) and quasars (QSOs) are used as tracers of dark matter by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to probe this redshift regime. We present results from ELG and QSO mock catalogs created from the Uchuu N-body simulation and tuned to DESI Data Release 2 (DR2) clustering. Employing a modified subhalo abundance matching (SHAM) technique, we populate Uchuu halos and subhalos with QSOs between 0.8 < z < 2.1. For ELGs, we modify this method to select satellite galaxies with low velocities relative to their associated central halos, and populate a separate set of Uchuu halos and subhalos with ELGs between 0.8 < z < 1.6. In this paper, we reproduce the redshift evolution of number density and clustering statistics across the fitted range of scales. We also measure the large-scale clustering bias of both the data and mock samples. These results improve simulated lightcone construction from cosmological models and enhance our understanding of the galaxy-halo connection.

Vaisakh, R. [Southern Methodist U.] (ORCID:0009000↗
DOE OSTI2025

High-redshift millennium and astrid galaxies in effective field theory at the field level

Effective field theory (EFT) modeling is expected to be a useful tool in the era of future higher-redshift galaxy surveys such as DESI-II and Spec-S5 due to its robust description of various large-scale structure tracers. However, large values of EFT bias parameters of higher-redshift galaxies could jeopardize the convergence of the perturbative expansion. Here, in this paper we measure the bias parameters and other EFT coefficients from samples of two types of star-forming galaxies in the state-of-the-art MilleniumTNG and astrid hydrodynamical simulations. Our measurements are based on the field-level EFT forward model that allows for precision EFT parameter measurements by virtue of cosmic variance cancellation. Specifically, we consider approximately representative samples of Lyman-break galaxies (LBGs) and Lyman-𝛼 emitters (LAEs) that are consistent with the observed (angular) clustering and number density of these galaxies at 𝑧 = 3. Reproducing the linear biases and number densities observed from existing LAE and LBG data, we find quadratic bias parameters that are roughly consistent with those predicted from the halo model coupled with a simple halo occupation distribution model. We also find nonperturbative velocity contributions (fingers of God) of a similar size for LBGs to the familiar case of luminous red galaxies. However, these contributions are quite small for LAEs despite their large satellite fraction values of up to ∼ 30%. Our results indicate that the effective momentum reach 𝑘 max at 𝑧 = 3 for LAEs (LBGs) will be in the range 0.3−0.6⁢ℎ Mpc −1 (0.2−0.8⁢ℎ Mpc −1 ), suggesting that EFT will perform well for high-redshift galaxy clustering. This work provides the first step toward obtaining realistic simulation-based priors on EFT parameters for LAEs and LBGs.

Sullivan, James M. [Massachusetts Inst. of Technol↗
DOE OSTI2026

Clustering analysis of medium-band selected high-redshift galaxies

Next-generation large-scale structure spectroscopic surveys will probe cosmology at high redshifts (2.3 < z < 3.5), relying on abundant galaxy tracers such as Lyα emitters (LAEs) and Lyman break galaxies (LBGs). Medium-band photometry has emerged as a potential technique for efficiently selecting these high-redshift galaxies. In this work, we present clustering analysis of medium-band selected galaxies at high redshift, utilizing photometric data from the Intermediate Band Imaging Survey (IBIS) and spectroscopic data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). We interpret the clustering of such samples using both Halo Occupation Distribution (HOD) modeling and a perturbation theory description of large-scale structure. Our modeling indicates that the current target sample is composed from an overlapping mixture of LAEs and LBGs with emission lines. Despite differences in target selection, we find that the clustering properties are consistent with previous studies, with correlation lengths r 0 ≃ 3-4 h -1 Mpc and a linear bias of b ∼ 1.8-2.5. Finally, we discuss the simulation requirements implied by these measurements and demonstrate that the properties of the samples would make them excellent targets to enhance our understanding of the high-z universe.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

The SPT-Chandra BCG Spectroscopic Survey. I. Evolution of the Entropy Threshold for ICM Cooling and AGN Feedback in Galaxy Clusters over the Last 10 Gyr

Abstract We present a multiwavelength study of the brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) in a sample of the 95 most massive galaxy clusters selected from the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev–Zeldovich (SZ) survey. Our sample spans a redshift range of 0.3 < z < 1.7, and is complete with optical spectroscopy from various ground-based observatories, as well as ground and space-based imaging from optical, X-ray, and radio wave bands. At z ∼ 0, previous studies have shown a strong correlation between the presence of a low-entropy cool core and the presence of both star formation and radio-loud active galactic nuclei in the central BCG. We show for the first time that the central entropy threshold for triggering star formation, which is universally seen in nearby systems, persists out to z ∼ 1, with only marginal (∼1 σ ) evidence for evolution in the threshold entropy value itself. In contrast, we do not find a similar high- z analog for an entropy threshold for feedback, but instead measure a strong evolution in the fraction of radio-loud BCGs in high-entropy cores, decreasing with increasing redshift. This could imply that the cooling-feedback loop was not as tight in the past, or that some other fuel source like mergers are fueling the radio sources more often with increasing redshift, making the radio luminosity an increasingly unreliable proxy for radio jet power. We also find that our SZ-based sample is missing a small (∼4%) population of the most luminous radio sources ( ν L ν > 10 42 erg s −1 ), likely due to radio contamination suppressing the SZ signal with which these clusters are detected.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2025

The z ∼ 1.03 Merging Cluster SPT-CL J0356–5337: New Strong Lensing Analysis with HST and MUSE

We present a strong lensing analysis and reconstruct the mass distribution of SPT-CL J0356−5337, a galaxy cluster at redshift z = 1.034. Our model supersedes previous models by making use of new multiband Hubble Space Telescope data and Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) spectroscopy. We identify two additional lensed galaxies to inform a more well-constrained model using 12 sets of multiple images in five separate lensed sources. The three previously known sources were spectroscopically confirmed by G. Mahler et al. at redshifts of z = 2.363, z = 2.364, and z = 3.048. We measured the spectroscopic redshifts of two of the newly discovered arcs using MUSE data, at z = 3.0205 and z = 5.3288. We increase the number of cluster member galaxies by a factor of 3 compared to previous work. We also report the detection of extended Lyα emission from several background galaxies. We measure the total projected mass density of the two major subcluster components, one dominated by the brightest cluster galaxy and the other by a compact group of luminous red galaxies. We find ${M}_{{\rm{B}}{\rm{C}}{\rm{G}}}(\lt 80\,\rm{kpc})=3.9{3}_{-0.14}^{+0.21}\times 1{0}^{13}$ M⊙ and ${M}_{{\rm{LRG}}}(\lt 80\,\rm{kpc})=2.9{2}_{-0.23}^{+0.16}\times 1{0}^{13}$ M⊙, yielding a mass ratio of $1.3{5}_{-0.08}^{+0.16}$ . The strong lensing constraints offer a robust estimate of the projected mass density regardless of modeling assumptions; allowing more substructure in this line of sight does not change the results or conclusions. Our results corroborate the conclusion that SPT-CL J0356−5337 is dominated by two mass components and is likely undergoing a major merger on the plane of the sky.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

The first high-redshift cavity power measurements of cool-core galaxy clusters with the International LOFAR Telescope

Radio-mode feedback associated with the active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at the cores of galaxy clusters injects a large amount of energy into the intracluster medium (ICM), offsetting radiative losses through X-ray emission. This mechanism prevents the ICM from rapidly cooling down and fueling extreme starburst activity as it accretes onto the central galaxies, and it is therefore a key ingredient in the evolution of galaxy clusters. However, the influence and mode of feedback at high redshifts (z ∼ 1) remains largely unknown. Low-frequency sub-arcsecond-resolution radio observations taken with the International LOFAR Telescope have demonstrated their ability to assist X-ray observations with constraining the energy output from the AGNs (or “cavity power”) in galaxy clusters, thereby enabling research at higher redshifts than before. In this pilot project, we tested this hybrid method on a high-redshift (0.6 < z < 1.3) sample of 13 galaxy clusters for the first time with the aim of verifying the performance of this method at these redshifts and providing the first estimates of the cavity power associated with the central AGN for a sample of distant clusters. We were able to detect clear radio lobes in three out of 13 galaxy clusters at redshifts of 0.7 < z < 0.9, and we used these detections in combination with ICM pressures surrounding the radio lobes obtained from standard profiles to calculate the corresponding cavity powers of the AGNs. Combining our results with the literature, the current data appear to suggest that the average cavity power peaked at a redshift ofz ∼ 0.4 and slowly decreases toward higher redshifts. However, we require more and tighter constraints on the cavity volume and a better understanding of our observational systematics to confirm any deviation of the cavity power trend from a constant level.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
NASA NTRS1988

Infrared cosmology from space

The potential scientific impact of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) on studies of high-redshift phenomena and the evolution of the universe is discussed. Several observational programs are described: (1) studies of very high redshift objects and their absorption spectra, and what they reveal about pregalactic gas and galaxy formation; (2) a large high-redshift galaxy survey for studying the evolution of galaxy clustering at z about 1 to 2; (3) generating a statistically complete catalog of several hundred gravitational lens systems; and (4) studies of the spectrum and anisotropy of the far-infrared background and what it reveals about the nature and distribution of pregalactic stars, gas, and dust.

Hogan, Craig J.↗
NASA NTRS1977

On possible associations of quasi-stellar objects and radio galaxies with rich clusters of galaxies

A comparison of the cataloged coordinates of QSOs and of 3CR galaxies with those of Abell's rich clusters of galaxies yields the following results: (1) There is no statistically significant evidence that high-redshift QSOs lie preferentially close to Abell clusters. (2) There is no statistically significant evidence that low-redshift QSOs lie preferentially close to Abell clusters. (3) There is (as is well known) highly significant evidence that 3CR galaxies lie preferentially close to Abell clusters. (4) The distributions of angular separations between QSOs and clusters and between 3CR galaxies and clusters differ at statistically significant (but not highly significant) levels. In view of these results, a generic relationship between low-redshift QSOs and radio galaxies seems questionable. This result for the QSOs is also entirely consistent with the idea that they are 'local' objects with redshifts of noncosmological origin.

Roberts, D. H.↗
NASA NTRS1987

Four-shooter - A large format charge-coupled device camera for the Hale telescope

The Hale telescope has employed an astronomical camera using four 800x800 CCDs in an optical arrangement that allows the imaging of a contiguous 1600-pixel-square region of the sky; reimaging optics are then used to yield a scale of 0.33 arcsec/pixel. Optical coatings are incorporated to yield a throughput at peak efficiency of nearly 50 percent, including telescope losses. This camera can be used in a scanning mode, in which the telescope tracking rate is offset and the charge is clocked in the chips in such a way that the charge image remains aligned with the optical image. Attention is given to the results of a survey for high-redshift quasars using this equipment, which has produced images for the most distant galaxy clusters yet discovered.

Gunn, James E.↗
NASA NTRS1981

SC 2059-247 - An unusual radio/X-ray source in a distant cluster of galaxies

The X-ray, optical and radio properties of a high redshift, Bautz-Morgan type I cluster of galaxies, namely SC 2059-247, are examined. This cluster is optically dominated by a cD galaxy with a powerful flat-spectrum radio source coincident with the possibly stellar nucleus. Two possible interpretations are suggested for the apparently soft X-ray spectrum of the extremely luminous cluster. Either the intracluster gas is much cooler in high-redshift clusters because they are less relaxed, or the X-ray and radio emissions from SC 2059-247 are the result of a nonthermal QSO/BL Lac type object in the nucleus of the cD. If the latter, it would be the first time that an X-ray source similar to a quasar or BL Lac object has been discovered in a previously identified galaxy.

White, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS1980

The photometric properties of brightest cluster galaxies. I - Absolute magnitudes in 116 nearby Abell clusters

Two-color aperture photometry of the brightest galaxies in a complete sample of nearby Abell clusters is presented. The results are used to anchor the bright end of the Hubble diagram; essentially the entire formal error for this method is then due to the sample of distant clusters used. New determinations of the systematic trend of galaxy absolute magnitude with the cluster properties of richness and Bautz-Morgan type are derived. When these new results are combined with the Gunn and Oke (1975) data on high-redshift clusters, a formal value (without accounting for any evolution) of q sub 0 = -0.55 + or - 0.45 (1 standard deviations) is found.

Hoessel, J. G.↗
NASA NTRS1987

X-ray selected high redshift clusters of galaxies

Studies of the evolution of X-ray emission from clusters of galaxies have so far used distant clusters discovered optically and then observed at X-ray wavelengths (Henry et al., 1982; Henry and Lavery, 1984). A different approach to the study of cluster evolution is to use clusters selected directly by their X-ray emission, since X-ray selection is extremely successful at discovering high-redshift clusters (up to z = 0.5). The Extension of the Medium Sensitivity Survey, a study of serendipitous X-ray sources discovered with the Einstein Imaging Proportional Counter, has so far provided a sample of more than 60 clusters with relatively high redshifts. Upon completion of the identification programs the sample will include over 100 clusters. Here the data currently available are presented, and the basic properties of this new sample of clusters of galaxies are discussed. A preliminary number-counts distribution is also derived.

Gioia, Isabella M.↗
DOE OSTI2026

Dark Matter Constraints from Small-Scale Cosmic Structure

Small-scale cosmic structure provides a powerful test of the fundamental nature of dark matter (DM). A wide range of DM models impact matter clustering on small scales, including warm, fuzzy, and (self-)interacting DM. In these scenarios, DM physics such as free-streaming, wave interference, and self/Standard Model interactions alter the abundance and internal structure of DM halos. Cosmological and astrophysical probes of nonlinear structure---including dwarf galaxies, strong lensing, the Lyman-$α$ forest, stellar streams, and high-redshift galaxies---are therefore sensitive to these effects. Here, we review DM constraints provided by small-scale structure, focusing on observables that probe scales smaller than $\sim 1~\mathrm{Mpc}$, which define the frontier of current measurements. We summarize how these constraints have been translated to limits on microphysical DM models, and we discuss key modeling uncertainties and observational systematics. Finally, we highlight the growing importance of probe combination and simulation-based inference for this field, and we overview upcoming observational facilities that will sharpen small-scale structure tests of DM physics.

Nadler, Ethan O. [UC, San Diego] (ORCID:0000000211↗
NASA NTRS1981

Quasar number density evolution

A simple model of quasar number density evolution is presented based on the occurrence of quasar-like radio galaxies (i.e., strong optical emission lines and type 2 radio morphology) exclusively in regions of low galaxy and intergalactic medium (IGM) density. This suggests a limit for the IGM density of 10 to the -4th (+ or - 1) per cu cm below which quasars are allowed to form and above which they are not allowed. In the recent past (z not greater than 1), the inferred quasar environments are the outskirts of clusters and near the centers of groups of galaxies. However, models of rich cluster evolution consistent with current X-ray observations predict gas densities of less than 10 to the -4th per cu cm in cluster cores in the more distant past (z between 1 and 5). This suggests that quasars were allowed to form in the cores of rich clusters at those epochs, which explains both the rich absorption spectra of high-redshift quasars and the absence of clusters surrounding quasars at lower redshift.

Stocke, J. T.↗
DOE OSTI2025

XRISM/Resolve view of Abell 2319: Turbulence, sloshing, and ICM dynamics

Here, we present results from XRISM/Resolve observations of the core of the galaxy cluster Abell 2319, focusing on its kinematic properties. The intracluster medium (ICM) exhibits temperatures of approximately 8 keV across the core, with a prominent cold front and a high-temperature region (⁠~11 keV) in the north-west. The average gas velocity in the 3' x 4' region around the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) covered by two Resolve pointings is consistent with that of the BCG to within 40 km s -1 ⁠ and we found modest average velocity dispersion of 230–250 km s -1 ⁠. On the other hand, spatially resolved spectroscopy reveals interesting variations. A blueshift of up to ~230 km s -1 ⁠ is observed around the east edge of the cold front, where the gas with the lowest specific entropy is found. The region further south inside the cold front shows only a small velocity difference from the BCG; however, its velocity dispersion is enhanced to ~400 km s -1 ⁠, implying the development of turbulence. These characteristics indicate that we are observing sloshing motion with some inclination angle following BCG and that gas phases with different specific entropy participate in sloshing with their own velocities, as expected from simulations. No significant evidence for a high-redshift ICM component associated with the subcluster Abell 2319B was found in the region covered by the current Resolve pointings. These results highlight the importance of sloshing and turbulence in shaping the internal structure of Abell 2319. Further deep observations are necessary to better understand the mixing and turbulent processes within the cluster.

Astronomy and AstroPhysics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Identification of more than 40 gravitationally magnified stars in a galaxy at redshift 0.725

Strong gravitational magnification enables the detection of faint background sources and allows researchers to resolve their internal structures and even identify individual stars in distant galaxies. Highly magnified individual stars are useful in various applications, including studies of stellar populations in distant galaxies and constraining dark matter structures in the lensing plane. However, these applications have been hampered by the small number of individual stars observed, as typically one or a few stars are identified from each distant galaxy. Here, we report the discovery of more than 40 microlensed stars in a single galaxy behind Abell 370 at redshift of 0.725 (dubbed ‘the Dragon arc’) when the Universe was half of its current age, using James Webb Space Telescope observations with the time-domain technique. These events were found near the expected lensing critical curves, suggesting that these are magnified stars that appear as transients from intracluster stellar microlenses. Through multi-wavelength photometry, we constrained their stellar types and found that many of them are consistent with red giants or supergiants magnified by factors of hundreds. Furthermore, this finding reveals a high occurrence of microlensing events in the Dragon arc and demonstrates that time-domain observations by the James Webb Space Telescope could lead to the possibility of conducting statistical studies of high-redshift stars.

Early universe↗
DOE OSTI2026

Enrichment by the first stars in a relic dwarf galaxy

Stars that contain trace amounts of elements heavier than helium (that is, ‘metallicity’) preserve the chemical fingerprints of the first stars. In the Milky Way, nearly all of the lowest-metallicity stars show an extreme over-abundance of carbon. The origin of this signature has remained a mystery owing to the lack of observational constraints on the environments in which it originates. Here, in this work, we present observations of a star in the >10-billion-year-old ultrafaint dwarf galaxy Pictor II, showing the lowest iron and calcium abundances outside the Milky Way (<1/43,000th solar and ~1/160,000th solar), with >3,000× relative carbon enhancement. The star’s exceptional paucity in iron and calcium make it clearly preserve enrichment from the first stars in a relic dwarf galaxy; Pictor II is one of the smallest, most chemically primordial systems known. This star supports the hypothesis that extreme carbon enhancement results from low-energy supernovae from the first stars, as the yields of energetic supernovae are harder to retain in small-scale environments. This signature of enrichment by the first stars may trace a regime inaccessible to current high-redshift observations, which can hardly detect the initial enrichment of the smallest galaxies.

chemical evolution↗
DOE OSTI2026

Full calibration of the tomographic redshift distribution from the HSC PDR3 Shape Catalog with DESI

The calibration of tomographic redshift distributionsis essential for cosmological analysis of weak lensing data.In this work, we calibrate all four tomographic bins of the Hyper Suprime Camera (HSC) weak lensing catalog with the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) Data Release 1 and 2 using the clustering redshifts technique. We include z > 1.2 redshift sources such as emission line galaxies (ELG) and quasars (QSO) sources in our calibration, which were not available in the previous HSC calibration (Rau et al. (2022), Mon. Not. Roy. Astron. Soc. 524 (2023) 5109), allowing a complete calibration of all the redshift bins. We find the first tomographic bin exhibits a small shift towards low redshifts. The second bin is in good agreement with the photometric calibration, while third and fourth bin exhibit a shift towards higher redshifts. However, these shifts are considerably smaller than the shifts obtained in the HSC Year 3 cosmic shear analyses. We evaluate the impact of galaxy bias and magnification effects from all the samples on the measurements, finding them to be small, and we propose corrections to reduce them further. Specifically, we relax the assumption of linear bias and only assume no redshift evolution of the cross-correlation coefficient, allowing us to leverage smaller clustering scales. We model the redshift distributions with splines and compare our results to previous analyses as well as to other parameterizations found in literature. For the two high-redshift tomographic bins, we find the shifts to higher redshifts with respect to the measurements performed in Rau+2022 to be Δz$_{3}$ =-0.039$^{+0.020}$$_{-0.021}$ and Δz$_{4}$ = -0.048$^{+0.012}$$_{-0.012}$.

Choppin de Janvry, J. [LBL, Berkeley; UC, Berkeley↗