Year 2018-2019

August 13, 2019

• Endo et al., First light demonstration of the integrated superconducting spectrometer

• Di Valentino et al., Interacting dark energy after the latest Planck, DES, and H0 measurements: an excellent solution to the H0 and cosmic shear tensions

August 6, 2019

• • Di Valentino et. al., Cosmological constraints in extended parameter space from the Planck 2018 Legacy release

July 3, 2019

• Joudaki et al., KiDS+VIKING-450 and DES-Y1 combined: Cosmology with cosmic shear

• Hamana et al., Cosmological constraints from cosmic shear two-point correlation functions with HSC survey first-year data

June 26, 2019

• • Gelmini et al., Hints of Sterile Neutrinos in Recent Measurements of the Hubble Parameter

June 19, 2019

• • Bengochea et al., Can the quantum vacuum fluctuations really solve the cosmological constant problem?

• Pritchard and Loeb, Evolution of the 21 cm signal throughout cosmic history

June 5, 2019

• • Lee et al., Producing a BOSS CMASS sample with DES imaging

  • Kadota et al., The cross-correlation between 21cm and CMB B modes from the cosmic birefringence in existence of light scalar field

May 29, 2019

• • Keeley et al., Implications of a transition in the dark energy equation of state for the H0 and σ8 tensions

• Katz et al., How to Quench a Dwarf Galaxy: The Impact of Inhomogeneous Reionization on Dwarf Galaxies and Cosmic Filaments

May 1, 2019

• • Digman et al., Forecasting Super-Sample Covariance in Future Weak Lensing Surveys with SuperSCRAM

• Pandey et al., Constraints on the redshift evolution of astrophysical feedback with Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect cross-correlations

April 24, 2019

• • Park et al., Alcock-Paczynski Test with the Evolution of Redshift-space Galaxy Clustering Anisotropy

• DESI Comissioning

April 17, 2019

• • Kitching et al., Propagating Residual Biases in Cosmic Shear Power Spectra

April 10, 2019

• • Van Dokkum et al., A second galaxy missing dark matter in the NGC1052 group

  • Zagorac et al., GUT-Scale Primordial Black Holes: Mergers and Gravitational Waves

April 3  2019

• • Astro2020 White Paper Week continued

  • Seminar Speaker

  • Alvarez et al., Mapping Cosmic Dawn and Reionization: Challenges and Synergies

  • Ferraro et al., Inflation and Dark Energy from spectroscopy at z>2

March 27  2019

• • Astro2020 White Paper Week

  • Caldwell et al., Cosmology with a Space-Based Gravitational Wave Observatory

  • Alvarez et al., Mapping Cosmic Dawn and Reionization: Challenges and Synergies

  • Berti et al., Tests of General Relativity and Fundamental Physics with Space-based Gravitational Wave Detectors

  • Ferraro et al., Inflation and Dark Energy from spectroscopy at z>2

  • Zagorac et al., GUT-Scale Primordial Black Holes: Mergers and Gravitational Waves

March 6  2019

• • Garcia-Farieta et al., Clustering and redshift-space distortions in modified gravity models with massive neutrinos

  • Cromer et al., Improving Constraints on Fundamental Physics Parameters with the Clustering of Sunyaev-Zeldovich Selected Galaxy Clusters

  • Madhavacheril et al.,  Fundamental Physics from Future Weak-Lensing Calibrated Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Galaxy Cluster Counts

  • Cosmo-lunch poll

February 27  2019

• • Montero-Camacho et al., Impact of inhomogeneous reionization on the Lyman-α forest

  • Castorina et al., Measuring the growth of structure with intensity mapping surveys

February 19  2019

• • All about mocks. Special event: discussion led by Albert Chuang (Stanford) and Ashley: Chuang et al., nIFTy Cosmology: Galaxy/halo mock catalogue comparison project on clustering statistics, Blot et al., Comparing approximate methods for mock catalogues and covariance matrices II: Power spectrum multipoles, Colavincenzo et al., Comparing approximate methods for mock catalogues and covariance matrices III: Bispectrum  and Lippich et al., Comparing approximate methods for mock catalogues and covariance matrices I: correlation function

  • Montero-Camacho et al., Impact of inhomogeneous reionization on the Lyman-α forest

February 13  2019

• • Kreisch et al., The Neutrino Puzzle: Anomalies, Interactions, and Cosmological Tensions

  • Ligo & Virgo Collaborations, Search for transient gravitational wave signals associated with magnetar bursts during Advanced LIGO's second observing run

February 6  2019 

• • Kim et al., Dust Polarization Maps from TIGRESS: E/B power asymmetry and TE correlation

  • Zheng et al., A Model-Independent Measurement of the Spatial Curvature using Cosmic Chronometers and the HII Hubble Diagram

January 29  2019 -> canceled due to polar vortex

• • Kim et al., Dust Polarization Maps from TIGRESS: E/B power asymmetry and TE correlation

January 23  2019 

• • Practice talk by Heidi Wu on Probing Cosmic Acceleration with Galaxy Clusters

Abstract:

The acceleration of the Universe is one of the biggest puzzles in physics: is it due to a cosmological constant, dynamical dark energy, or modification of gravity?  Galaxy clusters provide a unique opportunity to answer this question.  In this talk, I will first introduce how we use large sky surveys of galaxy clusters to study cosmic acceleration.  In these surveys, a major challenge is to accurately infer the mass of clusters.  I will then present my research on using simulations to improve mass calibration methods — including galaxy dynamics, weak gravitational lensing, and X-ray observations.  These results not only mitigate the systematic errors in current cluster surveys but also help the optimization of future ground- and space-based missions.

January 16  2019

• • Zeng et al., Searching for Oscillations in the Primordial Power Spectrum with CMB and LSS Data

  • Broadhurst et al., Twin LIGO/Virgo Detections of a Viable Gravitationally-Lensed Black Hole Merger

  • Hannuksela et al., Search for gravitational lensing signatures in LIGO-Virgo binary black hole events

December 11,  2018

• • LIGO & Virgo collaborations, GWTC-1: A Gravitational-Wave Transient Catalog of Compact Binary Mergers Observed by LIGO and Virgo during the First and Second Observing Runs

  • Chabanier et al., The one-dimensional power spectrum from the SDSS DR14 Lyα forests

November 28,  2018 (special time -> 2:00 pm)

• • Xu et al., Finding cosmic voids and filament loops using topological data analysis

  • Johnston et al., KiDS+GAMA: Intrinsic alignment model constraints for current and future weak lensing cosmology

November 14,  2018

• • Talk by Dustin Madison on Clocks in Space! Efforts to Detect Gravitational Waves Through Pulsar Timing

Abstract:

The North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) is well into a second decade of precisely timing an array of millisecond pulsars with the intent to detect and characterize gravitational waves (GWs) generated by, among other things, inspiraling supermassive black hole binaries (SMBHBs). I will discuss various aspects of the astrophysics of nanohertz gravitational waves, from the coupling of SMBHBs to their environments to cosmic superstrings to non-Einsteinian GW polarizations. I will also discuss how the anticipated features of the nanohertz GW landscape and the astrophysics of pulsars and the interstellar medium inform NANOGrav’s observing strategies

October 31,  2018

• • Talk by Johannes Lange on Updated Results on the Galaxy-Halo Connection from Satellite Kinematics in SDSS

Abstract:

I will present new results on the relationship between central galaxies and dark matter halos inferred from observations of satellite kinematics in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) DR7. We employ an updated analysis framework that includes detailed mock catalogues to model observational effects in SDSS. Our results constrain the color-dependent conditional luminosity function (CLF) of dark matter halos, as well as the radial profile of satellite galaxies. Confirming previous results, we find that red central galaxies live in more massive halos than blue galaxies at fixed luminosity. Additionally, our results suggest that satellite galaxies have a radial profile less centrally concentrated than dark matter but not as cored as resolved subhalos in dark matter-only simulations. Compared to previous works using satellite kinematics by More et al. (2011), we find much more competitive constraints on the galaxy-halo connection, on par with those derived from a combination of galaxy clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing. I will also compare our results on the galaxy-halo connection to other studies using galaxy clustering, galaxy-galaxy lensing and group catalogues, showing very good agreement between these different techniques. This resolves the tension between satellite kinematics results, as previously reported by More et al. (2011), and other probes.

October 24,  2018 

• • Bonilla et al., Forecast on lepton asymmetry from future CMB experiments

  • Talk by Jesse Golden-Marx on The Impact of Environment on Late Time Evolution of the Stellar Mass-Halo Mass relation

Abstract:

The Stellar Mass-Halo Mass (SMHM) relation provides insight into the galaxy-dark matter halo connection.  In Golden-Marx & Miller (2018), we incorporate the magnitude gap, the difference in brightness between the BCG and 4th brightest cluster member within 0.5 R200, into the cluster SMHM relation.  We observe that at fixed halo mass, clusters with larger magnitude gaps have larger central galaxy stellar masses.  We also see this in semi-analytic simulations, which suggests that it can be explained by the hierarchical growth of central galaxies.  Accounting for the magnitude gap significantly reduces the inferred intrinsic scatter to below 0.1 dex, thus strictly limiting the model space that can explain the stellar mass growth in centrals of massive halos.  Hierarchical growth also predicts that the central’s stellar mass and magnitude gap decrease with increasing lookback time.  However, the extent of the growth of the central’s stellar mass is dependent upon the aperture defined by the radial extent of the central galaxy.  We investigate the impact of aperture size on the slope of the SMHM relation and find that the slope is significantly steeper at larger aperture radii (~100 kpc).  Using this result, we test the prediction of hierarchical growth, and present our latest results using SDSS-redMaPPer.  Unlike prior studies we detect redshift evolution in the slope of the SMHM relation (measured at 100kpc aperture), which can be explained by recent merger activity. 

October 10,  2018 

• • Shanks et al., GAIA Cepheid parallaxes and 'Local Hole' relieve H0 tension

  • If needed: Riess et al., Seven Problems with the Claims Related to the Hubble Tension in arXiv:1810.02595

  • DES collaboration, Dark Energy Survey Year 1 Results: Constraints on Extended Cosmological Models from Galaxy Clustering and Weak Lensing

October 3,  2018 

• • Hikage et al., Cosmology from cosmic shear power spectra with Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam first-year data

  • Kozmanyan et al., Derivation of the Hubble constant using Planck and XMM-Newton observations of galaxy clusters

September 25,  2018 

• • Gould, Femtolensing of Gamma Ray Bursters

  • Ross et al., The Commissioning Instrument for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument

  • Kozmanyan et al., Derivation of the Hubble constant using Planck and XMM-Newton observations of galaxy clusters

September 19,  2018 

• • Klypin et al., Effects of long-wavelength fluctuations in large galaxy surveys

  • Wang et al., Evolution of dark energy reconstructed from the latest observations

  • Huang et al., Modeling baryonic physics in future weak lensing surveys

September 12,  2018 

• • Hemmatl et al., Photometric redshift calibration requirements for WFIRST Weak Lensing Cosmology: Predictions from CANDELS

  • Kable et al., Quantifying the CMB Degeneracy Between the Matter Density and Hubble Constant in Current Experiments

  • Klypin et al., Effects of long-wavelength fluctuations in large galaxy surveys

  • Huang et al., Modeling baryonic physics in future weak lensing surveys

September 6,  2018 

• • Springer et al., Weak lensing shear estimation beyond the shape-noise limit: a machine learning approach

  • Matt & Jahmour will talk to us about interesting topics from COSMO-18