Publications (10)0 Total impact
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Article: The impact of galaxy colour gradients on cosmic shear measurement
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ABSTRACT: Cosmic shear has been identified as the method with the most potential to constrain dark energy. To capitalise on this potential it is necessary to measure galaxy shapes with great accuracy, which in turn requires a detailed model for the image blurring, the Point Spread Function (PSF). In general the PSF varies with wavelength and therefore the PSF integrated over an observing filter depends on the spectrum of the object. For a typical galaxy the spectrum varies across the galaxy image, thus the PSF depends on the position within the image. We estimate the bias on the shear due to such colour gradients by modelling galaxies using two co-centered, co-elliptical Sersic profiles, each with a different spectrum. We estimate the effect of ignoring colour gradients and find the shear bias from a single galaxy can be very large depending on the properties of the galaxy. We find that halving the filter width reduces the shear bias by a factor of about 5. We show that, to first order, tomographic cosmic shear two point statistics depend on the mean shear bias over the galaxy population at a given redshift. For a single broad filter, and averaging over a small galaxy catalogue, we find a mean shear bias which is subdominant to the predicted statistical errors for future cosmic shear surveys. However, the true mean shear bias may exceed the statistical errors, depending on how accurately the catalogue represents the observed distribution of galaxies in the cosmic shear survey. We then investigate the bias on the shear for two-filter imaging and find that the bias is reduced by at least an order of magnitude. Lastly, we find that it is possible to calibrate galaxies for which colour gradients were ignored using two-filter imaging of a fair sample of noisy galaxies, if the galaxy model is known. For a S/N of 25 the number of galaxies required in each tomographic redshift bin is of order 1e4.05/2011; -
Article: Constraints on intrinsic alignment contamination of weak lensing surveys using the MegaZ-LRG sample
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ABSTRACT: Correlations between the intrinsic shapes of galaxies and the large-scale galaxy density field provide an important tool to investigate galaxy intrinsic alignments, which constitute a major astrophysical systematic in cosmological weak lensing (cosmic shear) surveys, but also yield insight into the formation and evolution of galaxies. We measure galaxy position-shape correlations in the MegaZ-LRG sample for more than 800,000 luminous red galaxies, making the first such measurement with a photometric redshift sample. In combination with a re-analysis of several spectroscopic SDSS samples, we constrain an intrinsic alignment model for early-type galaxies over long baselines in redshift (z ~ 0.7) and luminosity (4mag). We develop and test the formalism to incorporate photometric redshift scatter in the modelling. For r_p > 6 Mpc/h, the fits to galaxy position-shape correlation functions are consistent with the scaling with r_p and redshift of a revised, nonlinear version of the linear alignment model for all samples. An extra redshift dependence proportional to (1+z)^n is constrained to n=-0.3+/-0.8 (1sigma). To obtain consistent amplitudes for all data, an additional dependence on galaxy luminosity proportional to L^b with b=1.1+0.3-0.2 is required. The normalisation of the intrinsic alignment power spectrum is found to be (0.077 +/- 0.008)/rho_{cr} for galaxies at redshift 0.3 and r band magnitude of -22 (k- and evolution-corrected to z=0). Assuming zero intrinsic alignments for blue galaxies, we assess the bias on cosmological parameters for a tomographic CFHTLS-like lensing survey. Both the resulting mean bias and its uncertainty are smaller than the 1sigma statistical errors when using the constraints from all samples combined. The addition of MegaZ-LRG data reduces the uncertainty in intrinsic alignment bias on cosmological parameters by factors of three to seven. (abridged)08/2010; -
Article: Cosmic shear requirements on the wavelength-dependence of telescope point spread functions
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ABSTRACT: Cosmic shear requires high precision measurement of galaxy shapes in the presence of the observational Point Spread Function (PSF) that smears out the image. The PSF must therefore be known for each galaxy to a high accuracy. However, for several reasons, the PSF is usually wavelength dependent, therefore the differences between the spectral energy distribution of the observed objects introduces further complexity. In this paper we investigate the effect of the wavelength-dependence of the PSF, focusing on instruments in which the PSF size is dominated by the diffraction-limit of the telescope and which use broad-band filters for shape measurement. We first calculate biases on cosmological parameter estimation from cosmic shear when the stellar PSF is used uncorrected. Using realistic galaxy and star spectral energy distributions and populations and a simple three-component circular PSF we find that the colour-dependence must be taken into account for the next generation of telescopes. We then consider two different methods for removing the effect (i) the use of stars of the same colour as the galaxies and (ii) estimation of the galaxy spectral energy distribution using multiple colours and using a telescope model for the PSF. We find that both of these methods correct the effect to levels below the tolerances required for per-cent level measurements of dark energy parameters. Comparison of the two methods favours the template-fitting method because its efficiency is less dependent on galaxy redshift than the broad-band colour method and takes full advantage of deeper photometry. Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, version accepted for publication in MNRAS01/2010; -
Article: Simultaneous measurement of cosmology and intrinsic alignments using joint cosmic shear and galaxy number density correlations
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ABSTRACT: Cosmic shear is a powerful method to constrain cosmology, provided that any systematic effects are under control. The intrinsic alignment of galaxies is expected to severely bias parameter estimates if not taken into account. We explore the potential of a joint analysis of tomographic galaxy ellipticity, galaxy number density, and ellipticity-number density cross-correlations to simultaneously constrain cosmology and self-calibrate unknown intrinsic alignment and galaxy bias contributions. We treat intrinsic alignments and galaxy biasing as free functions of scale and redshift and marginalise over the resulting parameter sets. Constraints on cosmology are calculated by combining the likelihoods from all two-point correlations between galaxy ellipticity and galaxy number density. The information required for these calculations is already available in a standard cosmic shear dataset. We include contributions to these functions from cosmic shear, intrinsic alignments, galaxy clustering and magnification effects. In a Fisher matrix analysis we compare our constraints with those from cosmic shear alone in the absence of intrinsic alignments. For a Euclid-like survey potential future large area survey, such as Euclid, the extra information from the additional correlation functions can make up for the additional free parameters in the intrinsic alignment and galaxy bias terms, depending on the flexibility in the models. For example, the Dark Energy Task Force figure of merit is recovered even when more than 100 free parameters are marginalised over. We find that the redshift quality requirements are similar to those calculated in the absence of intrinsic alignments. Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures; submitted to Astronomy and Astrophysics11/2009; -
Article: Limitations of model fitting methods for lensing shear estimation
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ABSTRACT: Gravitational lensing shear has the potential to be the most powerful tool for constraining the nature of dark energy. However, accurate measurement of galaxy shear is crucial and has been shown to be non-trivial by the Shear TEsting Programme. Here we demonstrate a fundamental limit to the accuracy achievable by model-fitting techniques, if oversimplistic models are used. We show that even if galaxies have elliptical isophotes, model-fitting methods which assume elliptical isophotes can have significant biases if they use the wrong profile. We use noise-free simulations to show that on allowing sufficient flexibility in the profile the biases can be made negligible. This is no longer the case if elliptical isophote models are used to fit galaxies made up of a bulge plus a disk, if these two components have different ellipticities. The limiting accuracy is dependent on the galaxy shape but we find the most significant biases for simple spiral-like galaxies. The implications for a given cosmic shear survey will depend on the actual distribution of galaxy morphologies in the universe, taking into account the survey selection function and the point spread function. However our results suggest that the impact on cosmic shear results from current and near future surveys may be negligible. Meanwhile, these results should encourage the development of existing approaches which are less sensitive to morphology, as well as methods which use priors on galaxy shapes learnt from deep surveys. Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures05/2009; -
Article: PSF calibration requirements for dark energy from cosmic shear
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ABSTRACT: The control of systematic effects when measuring galaxy shapes is one of the main challenges for cosmic shear analyses. In this context, we study the fundamental limitations on shear accuracy due to the measurement of the Point Spread Function (PSF) from the finite number of stars. In order to do that, we translate the accuracy required for cosmological parameter estimation to the minimum number of stars over which the PSF must be calibrated. We first derive our results analytically in the case of infinitely small pixels (i.e. infinitely high resolution). Then image simulations are used to validate these results and investigate the effect of finite pixel size in the case of an elliptical gaussian PSF. Our results are expressed in terms of the minimum number of stars required to calibrate the PSF in order to ensure that systematic errors are smaller than statistical errors when estimating the cosmological parameters. On scales smaller than the area containing this minimum number of stars, there is not enough information to model the PSF. In the case of an elliptical gaussian PSF and in the absence of dithering, 2 pixels per PSF Full Width at Half Maximum (FWHM) implies a 20% increase of the minimum number of stars compared to the ideal case of infinitely small pixels; 0.9 pixels per PSF FWHM implies a factor 100 increase. In the case of a good resolution and a typical Signal-to-Noise Ratio distribution of stars, we find that current surveys need the PSF to be calibrated over a few stars, which may explain residual systematics on scales smaller than a few arcmins. Future all-sky cosmic shear surveys require the PSF to be calibrated over a region containing about 50 stars. Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, accepted by A&A11/2007; -
Article: Galaxy Evolution and Cosmology with the Square Kilometre Array
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ABSTRACT: The present-day Universe is seemingly dominated by dark energy and dark matter, but mapping the normal (baryonic) content remains vital for both astrophysics - understanding how galaxies form - and astro-particle physics - inferring properties of the dark components. The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will provide the only means of studying the cosmic evolution of neutral Hydrogen (HI) which, alongside information on star formation from the radio continuum, is needed to understand how stars formed from gas within dark-matter over-densities and the roles of gas accretion and galaxy merging. `All hemisphere' HI redshift surveys to redshift 1.5 are feasible with wide-field-of-view realizations of the SKA and, by measuring the galaxy power spectrum in exquisite detail, will allow the first precise studies of the equation-of-state of dark energy. The SKA will be capable of other uniquely powerful cosmological studies including the measurement of the dark-matter power spectrum using weak gravitational lensing, and the precise measurement of H0 using extragalactic water masers. The SKA is likely to become the premier dark-energy-measuring machine, bringing breakthroughs in cosmology beyond those likely to be made possible by combining CMB (e.g. Planck), optical (e.g. LSST, SNAP) and other early-21st-century datasets. Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures, to appear in "Science with the Square Kilometer Array", eds.C. Carilli and S. Rawlings, New Astronomy Reviews (Elsevier: Amsterdam)09/2004; -
Article: Point spread function calibration requirements for dark energy from cosmic shear
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ABSTRACT: Context. The control of systematic effects when measuring background galaxy shapes is one of the main challenges for cosmic shear analyses. Aims. Study the fundamental limitations on shear accuracy due to the measurement of the point spread function (PSF) from the finite number of stars that are available. We translate the accuracy required for cosmological parameter estimation to the minimum number of stars over which the PSF must be calibrated. Methods. We characterise the error made in the shear arising from errors on the PSF. We consider different PSF models, from a simple elliptical Gaussian to various shapelet parametrisations. First we derive our results analytically in the case of infinitely small pixels (i.e. infinitely high resolution), then image simulations are used to validate these results and investigate the effect of finite pixel size in the case of the elliptical Gaussian PSF. Results. Our results are expressed in terms of the minimum number of stars required to calibrate the PSF in order to ensure that systematic errors are smaller than statistical errors when estimating the cosmological parameters. On scales smaller than the area containing this minimum number of stars, there is not enough information to model the PSF. This means that these small scales should not be used to constrain cosmology unless the instrument and the observing strategy are optimised to make this variability extremely small. The minimum number of stars varies with the square of the star Signal-to-Noise Ratio, with the complexity of the PSF and with the pixel size. In the case of an elliptical Gaussian PSF and in the absence of dithering, 2 pixels per PSF full width at half maximum (FWHM) implies a 20% increase of the minimum number of stars compared to the ideal case of infinitely small pixels; 0.9 pixels per PSF FWHM implies a factor 100 increase. Conclusions. In the case of a good resolution and a typical Signal-to-Noise Ratio distribution of stars, we find that current surveys need the PSF to be calibrated over a few stars, which may explain residual systematics on scales smaller than a few arcmins. Future all-sky cosmic shear surveys require the PSF to be calibrated over a region containing about 50 stars. Due to the simplicity of our models these results should be interpreted as optimistic and therefore provide a measure of a systematic “floor' intrinsic to shape measurements.http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20079150. -
Article: Galaxy evolution, cosmology and dark energy with the Square Kilometer Array
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ABSTRACT: The present-day Universe is seemingly dominated by dark energy and dark matter, but mapping the normal (baryonic) content remains vital for both astrophysics – understanding how galaxies form – and astro-particle physics – inferring properties of the dark components.The Square Kilometer Array (SKA) will provide the only means of studying the cosmic evolution of neutral hydrogen (HI) which, alongside information on star formation from the radio continuum, is needed to understand how stars formed from gas within dark-matter over-densities and the rôles of gas accretion and galaxy merging.‘All hemisphere’ HI redshift surveys to z ∼ 1.5 are feasible with wide-field-of-view realizations of the SKA and, by measuring the galaxy power spectrum in exquisite detail, will allow the first precise studies of the equation-of-state of dark energy. The SKA will be capable of other uniquely powerful cosmological studies including the measurement of the dark-matter power spectrum using weak gravitational lensing, and the precise measurement of H0 using extragalactic water masers.The SKA is likely to become the premier dark-energy-measuring machine, bringing breakthroughs in cosmology beyond those likely to be made possible by combining CMB (e.g. Planck), optical (e.g. LSST, SNAP) and other early-21st-century datasets.New Astronomy Reviews. -
Article: Cosmology with the SKA
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ABSTRACT: We argue that the Square Kilometer Array has the potential to make both redshift (HI) surveys and radio continuum surveys that will revolutionize cosmological studies, provided that it has sufficient instantaneous field-of-view that these surveys can cover a hemisphere (fsky ∼ 0.5) in a timescale ∼1 yr. Adopting this assumption, we focus on two key experiments which will yield fundamental new measurements in cosmology, characterizing the properties of the mysterious dark energy which dominates the dynamics of today’s Universe. Experiment I will map out ∼109(fsky/0.5) HI galaxies to redshift z ≈ 1.5, providing the premier measurement of the clustering power spectrum of galaxies: accurately delineating the acoustic oscillations and the ‘turnover’. Experiment II will quantify the cosmic shear distortion of ∼1010(fsky/0.5) radio continuum sources, determining a precise power spectrum of the dark matter, and its growth as a function of cosmic epoch. We contrast the performance of the SKA in precision cosmology with that of other facilities which will, probably or possibly, be available on a similar timescale. We conclude that data from the SKA will yield transformational science as the direct result of four key features: (i) the immense cosmic volumes probed, exceeding future optical redshift surveys by more than an order of magnitude; (ii) well-controlled systematic effects such as the narrow ‘k-space window function’ for Experiment I and the accurately known ‘point-spread function’ (synthesized beam) for Experiment II; (iii) the ability to measure with high precision large-scale modes in the clustering power spectra, for which nuisance effects such as non-linear structure growth, peculiar velocities and ‘galaxy bias’ are minimised; and (iv) different degeneracies between key parameters to those which are inherent in the Cosmic Microwave Background.New Astronomy Reviews.
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Institutions
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2004
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University College London
- Department of Physics and Astronomy
London, ENG, United Kingdom
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