The prevalence of cooling cores in clusters of galaxies at z≈ 0.15–0.4

We present a Chandra study of 38 X-ray-luminous clusters of galaxies in the ROSAT Brightest Cluster Sample (BCS) that lie at moderate redshifts  ( z ≈ 0.15–0.4)  . Based primarily on power ratios and temperature maps, we find that the majority of clusters at moderate redshift generally have smooth, relaxed morphologies with some evidence for mild substructure perhaps indicative of recent minor merger activity. Using spatially resolved spectral analyses, we find that cool cores appear still to be common at moderate redshift. At a radius of 50 kpc, we find that at least 55 per cent of the clusters in our sample exhibit signs of mild cooling  ( t _cool < 10 Gyr)  , while in the central bin at least 34 per cent demonstrate signs of strong cooling  ( t _cool < 2 Gyr)  . These percentages are nearly identical to those found for luminous, low-redshift clusters of galaxies, indicating that there appears to be little evolution in cluster cores since   z ≈ 0.4  and suggesting that heating and cooling mechanisms may already have stabilized by this epoch. Comparing the central cooling times to catalogues of central Hα emission in BCS clusters, we find a strong correspondence between the detection of Hα and central cooling time. We also confirm a strong correlation between the central cooling time and cluster power ratios, indicating that crude morphological measures can be used as a proxy for more rigorous analysis in the face of limited signal-to-noise ratio data. Finally, we find that the central temperatures for our sample typically drop by no more than a factor of ∼3–4 from the peak cluster temperatures, similar to those of many nearby clusters.     

Using bright ellipticals as dark energy cosmic clocks

The age of the Universe has been increasingly constrained by different techniques, such as the observations of type Ia supernovae (SNIa) at high redshift or dating the stellar populations of globular clusters. In this paper, we present a complementary approach using the colours of the brightest elliptical galaxies in clusters over a wide redshift range  ( z ≲ 1)  . We put new and independent bounds on the dark energy equation of state parametrized by a constant pressure-to-density ratio   w _Q  and by a parameter (ξ) which determines the scaling between the matter and dark energy densities. We find that accurate estimates of the metallicities of the stellar populations in moderate and high-redshift cluster galaxies can pose stringent constraints on the parameters that describe dark energy. Our results are in good agreement with the analysis of dark energy models using SNIa data as a constraint. Accurate estimates of the metallicities of stellar populations in cluster galaxies at   z ≲ 2  will make this approach a powerful complement to studies of cosmological parameters using high-redshift SNIa.     

The GLARE Survey – II. Faint z≈ 6 Lyα line emitters in the HUDF

The galaxy population at   z ≈ 6  has been the subject of intense study in recent years, culminating in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF) – the deepest imaging survey yet. A large number of high-redshift galaxy candidates have been identified within the HUDF, but until now analysis of their properties has been hampered by the difficulty of obtaining spectroscopic redshifts for these faint galaxies. Our 'Gemini Lyman-Alpha at Reionization Era' (GLARE) project has been designed to undertake spectroscopic follow-up of faint  ( z ' < 28.5)  i '-drop galaxies at   z ≈ 6  in the HUDF. In a previous paper we presented preliminary results from the first 7.5 h of data from GLARE. In this paper we detail the complete survey. We have now obtained 36 h of spectroscopy on a single GMOS slitmask from Gemini-South, with a spectral resolution of  λ/Δλ_FWHM≈ 1000  . We identify five strong Lyα emitters at   z > 5.5  , and a further nine possible line emitters with detections at lower significance. We also place tight constraints on the equivalent width of Lyα emission for a further ten i '-drop galaxies and examine the equivalent width distribution of this faint spectroscopic sample of   z ≈ 6  galaxies. We find that the fraction of galaxies with little or no emission is similar to that at   z ≈ 3  , but that the   z ≈ 6  population has a tail of sources with high rest-frame equivalent widths. Possible explanations for this effect include a tendency towards stronger line emission in faint sources, which may arise from extreme youth or low metallicity in the Lyman-break population at high redshift, or possibly a top-heavy initial mass function.     

Setting new constraints on the age of the Universe

There are three independent techniques for determining the age of the Universe: via cosmochronology of long-lived radioactive nuclei, via stellar modelling and population synthesis of the oldest stellar populations, and, most recently, via the precision cosmology that has become feasible with the mapping of the acoustic peaks in the cosmic microwave background. We demonstrate that all three methods give completely consistent results, and enable us to set rigorous bounds on the maximum and minimum ages that are allowed for the Universe. We present new constraints on the age of the Universe by performing a multiband colour analysis of bright cluster ellipticals over a large redshift range     , which allows us to infer the ages of their stellar populations over a wide range of possible formation redshifts and metallicities. Applying a prior to Hubble's constant of     we find the age of the Universe to be     (1 σ ), in agreement with the estimates from Type Ia supernovae, as well as with the latest uranium decay estimates, which yield an age for the Milky Way of     . If we combine the results from cluster ellipticals with the analysis of the angular power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background and with the observations of Type Ia supernovae at high redshift, we find a similar age:     . Without the assumption of any priors, universes older than 18 Gyr are ruled out by the data at the 90 per cent confidence level.     

The IPHAS-POSS-I proper motion survey of the Galactic plane

We present millimetre observations of a sample of 12 high-redshift ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) in the extended growth strip (EGS). These objects were initially selected on the basis of their observed mid-IR colours (  0.0 < [3.6]−[4.5] < 0.4  and  −0.7 < [3.6]−[8.0] < 0.5  ) to lie at high redshift  1.5 ≲ z ≲ 3  , and subsequent 20–38 μm mid-IR spectroscopy confirms that they lie in a narrow redshift window centred on   z ≈ 2  . We detect 9/12 of the objects in our sample at high significance  (>3σ)  with a mean 1200 μm flux of  〈 F _1200 μm〉= 1.6 ± 0.1  mJy. Our millimetre photometry, combined with existing far-IR photometry from the Far-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (FIDELS) and accurate spectroscopic redshifts, places constraints both sides of the thermal dust peak. This allows us to estimate the dust properties, including the far-IR luminosity, dust temperature and dust mass. We find that our sample is similar to other high- z and intermediate- z ULIRGs, and local systems, but has a different dust selection function than submillimeter-selected galaxies. Finally, we use existing 20-cm radio continuum imaging to test the far-IR/radio correlation at high redshift. We find that our sample is consistent with the local relation, implying little evolution. Furthermore, this suggests that our sample selection method is efficient at identifying ultraluminous, starburst-dominated systems within a very narrow redshift range centred at   z ∼ 2  .     

Confirmation of the effectiveness of submm source redshift estimation based on rest-frame radio–FIR photometry

We present a comparison between the published optical, infrared (IR) and CO spectroscopic redshifts of 15 (sub)mm galaxies and their photometric redshifts as derived from long-wavelength (radio–mm–far-IR) photometric data. The redshift accuracy measured for 12 submillimetre (submm) galaxies with at least one robustly determined colour in the radio–mm–far-IR regime is  δ z ≈ 0.30 (rms)  . Despite the wide range of spectral energy distributions in the local galaxies that are used in an unbiased manner as templates, this analysis demonstrates that photometric redshifts can be efficiently derived for submm galaxies with a precision of  δ z < 0.5  using only the rest-frame far-IR to radio wavelength data.     

A strategy for finding gravitationally lensed distant supernovae

Distant Type Ia and II supernovae (SNe) can serve as valuable probes of the history of the cosmic expansion and star formation, and provide important information on their progenitor models. At present, however, there are few observational constraints on the abundance of SNe at high redshifts. A major science driver for the Next Generation Space Telescope is the study of such very distant SNe. In this paper we discuss strategies for finding and counting distant SNe by using repeat imaging of supercritical intermediate redshift clusters whose mass distributions are well constrained via modelling of strongly lensed features. For a variety of different models for the star formation history and supernova progenitors, we estimate the likelihood of detecting lensed SNe as a function of their redshift. In the case of a survey conducted with Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ), we predict a high probability of seeing a supernova in a single return visit with either Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 or Advanced Camera for Surveys, and a much higher probability of detecting examples with     in the lensed case. Most events would represent magnified SNe II at     and a fraction will be more distant examples. We discuss various ways to classify such events using ground-based infrared photometry. We demonstrate an application of the method using the HST archival data and discuss the case of a possible event found in the rich cluster AC 114     .     

Gravitational lensing of type Ia supernovae by galaxy clusters

We propose a method to remove the mass-sheet degeneracy that arises when the mass of galaxy clusters is inferred from gravitational shear. The method utilizes high-redshift standard candles that undergo weak lensing. Natural candidates for such standard candles are type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia).
When corrected with the light-curve shape (LCS), the peak magnitude of SNe Ia provides a standard candle with an uncertainty in apparent magnitude of Δ m ≃0.1–0.2. Gravitational magnification of a background SN Ia by an intervening cluster would cause a mismatch between the observed SN Ia peak magnitude compared with that expected from its LCS and redshift. The average detection rate for SNe Ia with a significant mismatch of ≥2Δ m behind a cluster at z ≃0.05–0.15 is about 1–2 supernovae per cluster per year at J , I , R ≲25–26.
Since SNe are point-like sources for a limited period, they can experience significant microlensing by massive compact halo objects (MACHOs) in the intracluster medium. Microlensing events caused by MACHOs of ∼10⁻⁴ M⊙ are expected to have time-scales similar to that of the SN light curve. Both the magnification curve by a MACHO and the light curve of a SN Ia have characteristic shapes that allow us to separate them. Microlensing events caused by MACHOs of smaller mass can unambiguously be identified in the SN light curve if the latter is continuously monitored. The average number of identifiable microlensing events per nearby cluster ( z ≲0.05) per year is ∼0.02 ( f /0.01), where f is the fraction of the cluster mass in MACHOs of masses 10⁻⁷< M _macho/M⊙<10⁻⁴.     

The intracluster iron distribution around 4C+55.16

We report on the metal distribution in the intracluster medium around the radio galaxy 4C+55.16     observed with the Chandra X-ray Observatory . The radial metallicity profile shows a dramatic change at 10 arcsec (∼50 kpc) in radius from half solar to twice solar at inner radii. Also found was a plume-like feature located at ∼3 arcsec to the south-west of the centre of the galaxy, which is mostly accounted for by a strong enhancement of iron L emission. The X-ray spectrum of the plume is characterized by the metal abundance pattern of Type Ia supernovae (SNeIa), i.e. large ratios of Fe to α elements, with the iron metallicity being unusually high at     solar (90 per cent error). How the plume has been formed is not entirely clear. The inhomogeneous iron distribution suggested in this cluster provides important clues to understanding the metal enrichment process of the cluster medium.     

Evolution of the near-infrared in rich galaxy clusters

We present the K -band (2.2 μm) luminosity functions (LFs) of the X-ray-luminous clusters MS1054–0321 ( z  = 0.823), MS0451–0305 ( z  = 0.55), Abell 963 ( z  = 0.206), Abell 665 ( z  = 0.182) and Abell 1795 ( z  = 0.063) down to absolute magnitudes M _K  = −20. Our measurements probe fainter absolute magnitudes than do any previous studies of the near-infrared LFs of clusters. All the clusters are found to have similar LFs within the errors, when the galaxy populations are evolved to redshift z  = 0. It is known that the most massive bound systems in the Universe at all redshifts are X-ray-luminous clusters. Therefore, assuming that the clusters in our sample correspond to a single population seen at different redshifts, the results here imply that not only had the stars in present-day ellipticals in rich clusters formed by z  = 0.8, but that they existed in as luminous galaxies then as they do today.   Additionally, the clusters have K -band LFs which appear to be consistent with the K -band field LF in the range −24 <  M _K  < −22, although the uncertainties in both the field and cluster samples are large.     

Extinction curves flattened by reverse shocks in supernovae

We investigate the extinction curves of young galaxies in which dust is supplied from Type II supernovae (SNe II) and/or pair instability supernovae (PISNe). Since at high redshift ( z > 5), low-mass stars cannot be dominant sources for dust grains, SNe II and PISNe, whose progenitors are massive stars with short lifetimes, should govern the dust production. Here, we theoretically investigate the extinction curves of dust produced by SNe II and PISNe, taking into account reverse shock destruction induced by collision with ambient interstellar medium. We find that the extinction curve is sensitive to the ambient gas density around a SN, since the efficiency of reverse shock destruction strongly depends on it. The destruction is particularly efficient for small-sized grains, leading to a flat extinction curve in the optical and ultraviolet wavelengths. Such a large ambient density as   n _H≳ 1 cm⁻³  produces too flat an extinction curve to be consistent with the observed extinction curve for SDSS J1048+4637 at z = 6.2. Although the extinction curve is highly sensitive to the ambient density, the hypothesis that the dust is predominantly formed by SNe at z ∼ 6 is still allowed by the current observational constraints. For further quantification, the ambient density should be obtained by some other methods. Finally, we also discuss the importance of our results for observations of high- z galaxies, stressing a possibility of flat extinction curves.     

Do Type Ia supernovae prove Λ>0?

The evidence for positive cosmological constant Λ from Type Ia supernovae is re-examined.
Both high redshift supernova teams are found to underestimate the effects of host galaxy extinction. The evidence for an absolute magnitude–decay time relation is much weakened if supernovae not observed before maximum light are excluded. Inclusion of such objects artificially suppresses the scatter about the mean relation.
With a consistent treatment of host galaxy extinction and elimination of supernovae not observed before maximum, the evidence for a positive lambda is not very significant  (3–4 σ )  . A factor which may contribute to apparent faintness of high- z supernovae is evolution of the host galaxy extinction with z .
The Hubble diagram using all high- z distance estimates, including SZ clusters and gravitational lens time-delay estimates, does not appear inconsistent with an  Ω_o=1  model.
Although a positive Λ can provide an (albeit physically unmotivated) resolution of the low curvature implied by cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments and evidence that  Ω_o<1  from large-scale structure, the direct evidence from Type Ia supernovae seems at present to be inconclusive.     

A photometric study of the field around the candidate recoiling/binary black hole SDSS J092712.65+294344.0

We present a photometric far-ultraviolet (FUV) to K _s-band study of the field around quasar SDSS J092712.65+294344.0. The SDSS spectrum of this object shows various emission lines with two distinct redshifts, at   z = 0.699  and 0.712. Because of this peculiar spectroscopic feature, this source has been proposed as a candidate recoiling or binary black hole. A third alternative model involves two galaxies moving in the centre of a rich galaxy cluster. Here, we present a study addressing the possible presence of such a rich cluster of galaxies in the SDSS J092712.65+294344.0 field. We observed the  3.6 × 2.6  arcmin² field in the K _s band and matched the near-infrared data with the FUV and near-ultraviolet images in the Galaxy Evolution Explorer archive and the ugriz observations in the SDSS. From various colour–colour diagrams, we were able to classify the nature of 32 sources, only 6–11 of which have colours consistent with galaxies at   z ≈ 0.7  . We compare these numbers with the surface density of galaxies, stars and quasars and the expectations for typical galaxy clusters both at low and high redshift. Our study shows that the galaxy cluster scenario is in clear disagreement with the new observations.     

The evolution of [O ii] emission from cluster galaxies

We investigate the evolution of the star formation rate in cluster galaxies. We complement data from the Canadian Network for Observational Cosmology 1 (CNOC1) cluster survey  (0.15 < z < 0.6)  with measurements from galaxy clusters in the Two-degree Field (2dF) galaxy redshift survey  (0.05 < z < 0.1)  and measurements from recently published work on higher-redshift clusters, up to almost   z = 1  . We focus our attention on galaxies in the cluster core, i.e. galaxies with   r < 0.7  h ⁻¹₇₀ Mpc  . Averaging over clusters in redshift bins, we find that the fraction of galaxies with strong [O  ii ] emission is ≲20 per cent in cluster cores, and the fraction evolves little with redshift. In contrast, field galaxies from the survey show a very strong increase over the same redshift range. It thus appears that the environment in the cores of rich clusters is hostile to star formation at all the redshifts studied. We compare this result with the evolution of the colours of galaxies in cluster cores, first reported by Butcher and Oemler. Using the same galaxies for our analysis of the [O  ii ] emission, we confirm that the fraction of blue galaxies, which are defined as galaxies 0.2 mag bluer in the rest-frame B – V than the red sequence of each cluster, increases strongly with redshift. Because the colours of galaxies retain a memory of their recent star formation history, while emission from the [O  ii ] line does not, we suggest that these two results can best be reconciled if the rate at which the clusters are being assembled is higher in the past, and the galaxies from which it is being assembled are typically bluer.     

Temperature and abundance profiles of hot gas in galaxy groups – II. Implications for feedback and ICM enrichment

We investigate the history of galactic feedback and chemical enrichment within a sample of 15 X-ray bright groups of galaxies, on the basis of the inferred Fe and Si distributions in the hot gas and the associated metal masses produced by core-collapse and Type Ia supernovae (SNe). Most of these cool-core groups show a central Fe and Si excess, which can be explained by prolonged enrichment by SN Ia and stellar winds in the central early-type galaxy alone, but with tentative evidence for additional processes contributing to core enrichment in hotter groups. Inferred metal mass-to-light ratios inside r ₅₀₀ show a positive correlation with total group mass but are generally significantly lower than in clusters, due to a combination of lower global intracluster medium (ICM) abundances and gas-to-light ratios in groups. This metal deficiency is present for products from both SN Ia and SN II, and suggests that metals were either synthesized, released from galaxies or retained within the ICM less efficiently in lower mass systems. We explore possible causes, including variations in galaxy formation and metal release efficiency, cooling out of metals, and gas and metal loss via active galactic nuclei (AGN) – or starburst-driven galactic winds from groups or their precursor filaments. Loss of enriched material from filaments coupled with post-collapse AGN feedback emerges as viable explanations, but we also find evidence for metals to have been released less efficiently from galaxies in cooler groups and for the ICM in these to appear chemically less evolved, possibly reflecting more extended star formation histories in less massive systems. Some implications for the hierarchical growth of clusters from groups are briefly discussed.     

Monte‐Carlo simulation of a possible correlation between the estimated luminosity distances and internal extinctions of type Ia supernovae

This paper describes a Monte Carlo simulation of type Ia supernova data. It was shown earlier that the data of SNe Ia might contain a possible correlation between the estimated luminosity distances and internal extinctions. This correlation was shown by different statistical investigations of the data. In order to remove observational biases (for example the effect of the detection limit of the observing instrument) and to test the reality of the effect found earlier we developed a simple routine which simulates extinction values, redshifts and absolute magnitudes for Ia supernovae. We pointed out that the correlation found earlier in the real data between the internal extinction and luminosity distance does not occur in the simulated sample. Furthermore, it became obvious that the detection limit of the observing devices used in supernova projects does not affect the far end of the redshift‐luminosity distance relationship of Ia supernovae. This result strengthens the earlier conclusions of the authors that SN Ia supernovae alone do not support the existence of dark energy. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A reanalysis of the X-ray luminosities of clusters of galaxies with 0.3<z<0.6 in the EMSS sample

The X-ray luminosities of the Einstein Extended Medium Sensitivity Survey (EMSS) clusters of galaxies with redshifts  0.3< z <0.6  are remeasured using ROSAT Position Sensitive Proportional Counter (PSPC) data. It is found that the new luminosities are on average  1.18±0.08  times higher than previously measured, but also that this ratio depends strongly on the X-ray core radii we measure. For the clusters with small core radii, in general we confirm the EMSS luminosities, but for clusters with core radii >250 kpc (the constant value assumed in the EMSS), the new luminosities are  2.2±0.15  times the previous measurements. The X-ray luminosity function (XLF) at  0.3< z <0.6  is recalculated and is found to be consistent with the local XLF. The constraints on the updated properties of the  0.3< z <0.6  EMSS sample, including a comparison with the number of clusters predicted from local XLFs, indicate that the space density of luminous, massive clusters either has not evolved or has increased by a small factor ∼2 since   z =0.4  . The implications of this result are discussed in terms of constraints on the cosmological parameter Ω₀.     

Clues for the origin of the fundamental metallicity relations – I. The hierarchical building up of the structure

We analyse the evolutionary history of galaxies formed in a hierarchical scenario consistent with the concordance Lambda cold dark matter (ΛCDM) model focusing on the study of the relation between their chemical and dynamical properties. Our simulations consistently describe the formation of the structure and its chemical enrichment within a cosmological context. Our results indicate that the luminosity–metallicity and the stellar mass–metallicity (LZR and MZR) relations are naturally generated in a hierarchical scenario. Both relations are found to evolve with redshift. In the case of the MZR, the estimated evolution is weaker than that deduced from observational works by approximately 0.10 dex. We also determine a characteristic stellar mass, M _c≈ 3 × 10¹⁰ M_⊙, which segregates the simulated galaxy population into two distinctive groups and which remains unchanged since z ∼ 3, with a very weak evolution of its metallicity content. The value and role played by M _c is consistent with the characteristic mass estimated from the SDSS galaxy survey by Kauffmann et al. Our findings suggest that systems with stellar masses smaller than M _c are responsible for the evolution of this relation at least from z ≈ 3. Larger systems are stellar dominated and have formed more than 50 per cent of their stars at   z ≥ 2  , showing very weak evolution since this epoch. We also found bimodal metallicity and age distributions from z ∼ 3, which reflects the existence of two different galaxy populations. Although SN feedback may affect the properties of galaxies and help to shape the MZR, it is unlikely that it will significantly modify M _c since, from   z = 3  this stellar mass is found in systems with circular velocities larger than 100 km s⁻¹.     

Probing the neutral fraction of the IGM with GRBs during the epoch of reionization

We show that near-infrared observations of the red side of the Lyα line from a single gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglow cannot be used to constrain the global neutral fraction of the intergalactic medium (IGM),     , at the GRB's redshift to better than     . Some GRB sightlines will encounter more neutral hydrogen than others at fixed     owing to the patchiness of reionization. GRBs during the epoch of reionization will often bear no discernible signature of a neutral IGM in their afterglow spectra. We discuss the constraints on     from the   z = 6.3  burst, GRB050904, and quantify the probability of detecting a neutral IGM using future spectroscopic observations of high-redshift, near-infrared GRB afterglows. Assuming an observation with signal-to-noise ratio similar to the Subaru FOCAS spectrum of GRB050904 and that the column density distribution of damped Lyα absorbers is the same as measured at lower redshifts, a GRB from an epoch when     can be used to detect a partly neutral IGM at 97 per cent confidence level ≈10 per cent of the time (and, for an observation with three times the sensitivity, ≈30 per cent of the time).     

The redshift distribution of FIRST radio sources at 1 mJy

We present spectra for a sample of radio sources from the FIRST survey, and use them to define the form of the redshift distribution of radio sources at mJy levels. We targeted 365 sources and obtained 46 redshifts (13 per cent of the sample). We find that our sample is complete in redshift measurement to R ∼18.6, corresponding to z ∼0.2. Galaxies were assigned spectral types based on emission-line strengths. Early-type galaxies represent the largest subset (45 per cent) of the sample and have redshifts 0.15≲ z ≲0.5; late-type galaxies make up 15 per cent of the sample and have redshifts 0.05≲ z ≲0.2; starbursting galaxies are a small fraction (∼6 per cent), and are very nearby ( z ≲0.05). Some 9 per cent of the population have Seyfert 1/quasar-type spectra, all at z ≳0.8, and 4 per cent are Seyfert 2 type galaxies at intermediate redshifts ( z ∼0.2).
Using our measurements and data from the Phoenix survey (Hopkins et al.), we obtain an estimate for N ( z ) at S _1.4 GHz≥1 mJy and compare this with model predictions. At variance with previous conclusions, we find that the population of starbursting objects makes up ≲5 per cent of the radio population at S ∼1 mJy.