Gravitational waves are expected to be radiated by supermassive black hole binaries formed during galaxy mergers. A stochastic superposition of gravitational waves from all such binary systems would ...modulate the arrival times of pulses from radio pulsars. Using observations of millisecond pulsars obtained with the Parkes radio telescope, we constrained the characteristic amplitude of this background, Ac,yr, to be <1.0 × 10–15 with 95% confidence. This limit excludes predicted ranges for Ac,yr from current models with 91 to 99.7% probability. We conclude that binary evolution is either stalled or dramatically accelerated by galactic-center environments and that higher-cadence and shorter-wavelength observations would be more sensitive to gravitational waves.
Abstract
We compute the spherically averaged power spectrum from four seasons of data obtained for the Epoch of Reionization (EoR) project observed with the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA). We ...measure the EoR power spectrum over k = 0.07–3.0 h Mpc−1 at redshifts $z$ = 6.5–8.7. The largest aggregation of 110 h on EoR0 high band (3340 observations), yields a lowest measurement of (43 mK)2 = 1.8 × 103 mK2 at k = 0.14 h Mpc−1 and $z$ = 6.5 (2σ thermal noise plus sample variance). Using the Real-Time System to calibrate and the CHIPS pipeline to estimate power spectra, we select the best observations from the central five pointings within the 2013–2016 observing seasons, observing three independent fields and in two frequency bands. This yields 13 591 2-min snapshots (453 h), based on a quality assurance metric that measures ionospheric activity. We perform another cut to remove poorly calibrated data, based on power in the foreground-dominated and EoR-dominated regions of the two-dimensional power spectrum, reducing the set to 12 569 observations (419 h). These data are processed in groups of 20 observations, to retain the capacity to identify poor data, and used to analyse the evolution and structure of the data over field, frequency, and data quality. We subsequently choose the cleanest 8935 observations (298 h of data) to form integrated power spectra over the different fields, pointings, and redshift ranges.
We present a theoretical model for the evolution of mass, angular momentum and size of galaxy discs and bulges, and we implement it into the semi-analytic galaxy formation code, Semi-Analytic Galaxy ...Evolution. The model follows both secular and violent evolutionary channels, including smooth accretion, disc instabilities, minor and major mergers. We find that the combination of our recipe with hierarchical clustering produces two distinct populations of bulges: merger-driven bulges, akin to classical bulges and ellipticals, and instability-driven bulges, akin to secular (or pseudo-)bulges. The model mostly reproduces the mass–size relation of gaseous and stellar discs, the evolution of the mass–size relation of ellipticals, the Faber–Jackson relation, and the magnitude–colour diagram of classical and secular bulges. The model predicts only a small overlap of merger-driven and instability-driven components in the same galaxy, and predicts different bulge types as a function of galaxy mass and disc fraction. Bulge type also affects the star formation rate and colour at a given luminosity. The model predicts a population of merger-driven red ellipticals that dominate both the low-mass and high-mass ends of the galaxy population, and span all dynamical ages; merger-driven bulges in disc galaxies are dynamically old and do not interfere with subsequent evolution of the star-forming component. Instability-driven bulges dominate the population at intermediate galaxy masses, especially thriving in massive discs. The model green valley is exclusively populated by instability-driven bulge hosts. Through the present implementation, the mass accretion history is perceivable in the galaxy structure, morphology and colours.
Intensity mapping of the neutral hydrogen (H i) is a new observational tool to efficiently map the large-scale structure over wide redshift ranges. The cross-correlation of intensity maps with galaxy ...surveys is a robust measure of the cosmological power spectrum and the H i content of galaxies which diminishes systematics caused by instrumental effects and foreground removal. We examine the cross-correlation signature at redshift 0.9 using a semi-analytical galaxy formation model in order to model the H i gas of galaxies as well as their optical magnitudes. We determine the scale-dependent clustering of the cross-correlation power for different types of galaxies determined by their colours, which act as a proxy for their star formation activity. We find that the cross-correlation coefficient with H i density for red quiescent galaxies falls off more quickly on smaller scales k > 0.2 h Mpc−1 than for blue star-forming galaxies. Additionally, we create a mock catalogue of highly star-forming galaxies to mimic the WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey, and use this to predict existing and future measurements using data from the Green Bank telescope and Parkes telescope. We find that the cross-power of highly star-forming galaxies shows a higher clustering on small scales than any other galaxy type and that this significantly alters the power spectrum shape on scales k > 0.2 h Mpc−1. We show that the cross-correlation coefficient is not negligible when interpreting the cosmological cross-power spectrum and additionally contains information about the H i content of the optically selected galaxies.
ABSTRACT
Current attempts to measure the 21 cm power spectrum of neutral hydrogen during the epoch of reionization (EoR) are limited by systematics that produce measured upper limits above both the ...thermal noise and the expected cosmological signal. These systematics arise from a combination of observational, instrumental, and analysis effects. In order to further understand and mitigate these effects, it is instructive to explore different aspects of existing data sets. One such aspect is the choice of observing field. To date, MWA EoR observations have largely focused on the EoR0 field. In this work, we present a new detailed analysis of the EoR1 field. The EoR1 field is one of the coldest regions of the southern radio sky, but contains the very bright radio galaxy Fornax-A. The presence of this bright extended source in the primary beam of the interferometer makes the calibration and analysis of EoR1 particularly challenging. We demonstrate the effectiveness of a recently developed shapelet model of Fornax-A in improving the results from this field. We also describe and apply a series of data quality metrics that identify and remove systematically contaminated data. With substantially improved source models, upgraded analysis algorithms and enhanced data quality metrics, we determine EoR power spectrum upper limits based on analysis of the best ∼14-h data observed during 2015 and 2014 at redshifts 6.5, 6.8, and 7.1, with the lowest 2σ upper limit at z = 6.5 of Δ2 ≤ (73.78 mK)2 at k = 0.13 h Mpc−1, improving on previous EoR1 measurement results.
We investigate the evolution of the star formation rate–stellar mass relation (SFR–M
⋆) and galaxy stellar mass function (GSMF) of z ∼ 4–7 galaxies, using cosmological simulations run with the ...smoothed particle hydrodynamics code P-GADGET3(XXL). We explore the effects of different feedback prescriptions (supernova-driven galactic winds and AGN feedback), initial stellar mass functions and metal cooling. We show that our fiducial model, with strong energy-driven winds and early active galactic nuclei (AGN) feedback, is able to reproduce the observed stellar mass function obtained from Lyman-break selected samples of star-forming galaxies at redshift 6 ≤ z ≤ 7. At z ∼ 4, observed estimates of the GSMF vary according to how the sample was selected. Our simulations are more consistent with recent results from K-selected samples, which provide a better proxy of stellar masses and are more complete at the high-mass end of the distribution. We find that in some cases simulated and observed SFR–M
⋆ relations are in tension, and this can lead to numerical predictions for the GSMF in excess of the GSMF observed. By combining the simulated SFR(M
⋆) relationship with the observed star formation rate function at a given redshift, we argue that this disagreement may be the result of the uncertainty in the SFR–M
⋆ (L
UV–M
⋆) conversion. Our simulations predict a population of faint galaxies not seen by current observations.
Measurements of 21 cm Epoch of Reionization (EoR) structure are subject to systematics originating from both the analysis and the observation conditions. Using 2013 data from the Murchison Widefield ...Array (MWA), we show the importance of mitigating both sources of contamination. A direct comparison between results from Beardsley et al. and our updated analysis demonstrates new precision techniques, lowering analysis systematics by a factor of 2.8 in power. We then further lower systematics by excising observations contaminated by ultra-faint RFI, reducing by an additional factor of 3.8 in power for the zenith pointing. With this enhanced analysis precision and newly developed RFI mitigation, we calculate a noise-dominated upper limit on the EoR structure of Δ2 ≤ 3.9 × 103 mK2 at k = 0.20 h Mpc−1 and z = 7 using 21 hr of data, improving previous MWA limits by almost an order of magnitude.
We test statistically the hypothesis that radio pulsar glitches result from an avalanche process, in which angular momentum is transferred erratically from the flywheel-like superfluid in the star to ...the slowly decelerating, solid crust via spatially connected chains of local, impulsive, threshold-activated events, so that the system fluctuates around a self-organized critical state. Analysis of the glitch population (currently 285 events from 101 pulsars) demonstrates that the size distribution in individual pulsars is consistent with being scale Invariant, as expected for an avalanche process. The measured power-law exponents fall In the range -0.13 less than or equal to a less than or equal to 2.4, with a approximately 1.2 for the youngest pulsars. The waiting-time distribution is consistent with being exponential in seven out of nine pulsars where it can be measured reliably, after adjusting for observational limits on the minimum waiting time, as for a constant-rate Poisson process. PSR J0537-6910 and PSR J0835-4510 are the exceptions; their waiting-time distributions show evidence of quasi-periodicity. In each object, stationarity requires that the rate lambda equal -cv/( Delta v), where v is the angular acceleration of the crust, ( Delta p) is the mean glitch size, and ep is the relative angular acceleration of the crust and superfluid. Measurements yield e less than or equal to 7 x 10 super(-5) for PSR J0358+5413 and e less than or equal to 1 (trivially) for the other eight objects, which have a < 2. There is no evidence that lambda changes monotonically with spin-down age. The rate distribution itself is fitted reasonably well by an exponential for lambda greater than or equal to 0.25 yr super(-1), with ( lambda ) = 1-3 super(+) sub(-) super(0) sub(0) super(.) sub(.) super(7) sub(6) yr super(-1). For lambda < 0.25 yr super(-1) the exact form is unknown; the exponential overestimates the number of glitching pulsars observed at low lambda , where the limited total observation time exercises a selection bias. In order to reproduce the aggregate waiting-time distribution of the glitch population as a whole, the fraction of pulsars with lambda > 0.25 yr super(-1) must exceed similar to 70%.
The formation and growth processes of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are not well constrained. SMBH population models, however, provide specific predictions for the properties of the ...gravitational-wave background (GWB) from binary SMBHs in merging galaxies throughout the universe. Using observations from the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array, we constrain the fractional GWB energy density (Ω GW ) with 95% confidence to be Ω GW (H₀/73 kilometers per second per megaparsec)² < 1.3 × 10⁻⁹ (where H₀ is the Hubble constant) at a frequency of 2.8 nanohertz, which is approximately a factor of 6 more stringent than previous limits. We compare our limit to models of the SMBH population and find inconsistencies at confidence levels between 46 and 91%. For example, the standard galaxy formation model implemented in the Millennium Simulation Project is inconsistent with our limit with 50% probability.
Abstract
We present an analysis of the Hubble diagram for 12 normal Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) observed in the near-infrared (NIR) J and H bands. We select SNe exclusively from the redshift range ...0.03 < z < 0.09 to reduce uncertainties coming from peculiar velocities while remaining in a cosmologically well-understood region. All of the SNe in our sample exhibit no spectral or B-band light-curve peculiarities and lie in the B-band stretch range of 0.8-1.15. Our results suggest that SNe Ia observed in the NIR are the best known standard candles. We fit previously determined NIR light-curve templates to new high-precision data to derive peak magnitudes and to determine the scatter about the Hubble line. Photometry of the 12 SNe is presented in the natural system. Using a standard cosmology of (H
0, Ωm, ΩΛ) = (70, 0.27, 0.73), we find a median J-band absolute magnitude of M
J
= −18.39 with a scatter of σ
J
= 0.116 and a median H-band absolute magnitude of M
H
= −18.36 with a scatter of σ
H
= 0.085. The scatter in the H band is the smallest yet measured. We search for correlations between residuals in the J- and H-band Hubble diagrams and SN properties, such as SN colour, B-band stretch and the projected distance from the centre of the host galaxy. The only significant correlation is between the J-band Hubble residual and the J − H pseudo-colour. We also examine how the scatter changes when fewer points in the NIR are used to constrain the light curve. With a single point in the H band taken anywhere from 10 d before to 15 d after B-band maximum light and a prior on the date of H-band maximum set from the date of B-band maximum, we find that we can measure distances to an accuracy of 6 per cent. The precision of SNe Ia in the NIR provides new opportunities for precision measurements of both the expansion history of the universe and peculiar velocities of nearby galaxies.
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