Andisheh Mahdavi

Ubvri light curves of 44 type ia supernovae

We present UBVRI photometry of 44 Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) observed from 1997 to 2001 as part of a continuing monitoring campaign at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. The data set comprises 2190 observations and is the largest homogeneously observed and reduced sample of SNe Ia to date, nearly doubling the number of well-observed, nearby SNe Ia with published multicolor CCD light curves. The large sample of U-band photometry is a unique addition, with important connections to SNe Ia observed at high redshift. The decline rate of SN Ia U-band light curves correlates well with the decline rate in other bands, as does the U - B color at maximum light. However, the U-band peak magnitudes show an increased dispersion relative to other bands even after accounting for extinction and decline rate, amounting to an additional ~40% intrinsic scatter compared to the B band.

Joint Analysis of Cluster Observations. II. Chandra/XMM-Newton X-Ray and Weak Lensing Scaling Relations for a Sample of 50 Rich Clusters of Galaxies

We present a study of multiwavelength X-ray and weak lensing scaling relations for a sample of 50 clusters of galaxies. Our analysis combines Chandra and XMM-Newton data using an energy-dependent cross-calibration. After considering a number of scaling relations, we find that gas mass is the most robust estimator of weak lensing mass, yielding 15% ? 6% intrinsic scatter at (the pseudo-pressure YX yields a consistent scatter of 22% ? 5%). The scatter does not change when measured within a fixed physical radius of 1?Mpc. Clusters with small brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) to X-ray peak offsets constitute a very regular population whose members have the same gas mass fractions and whose even smaller (<10%) deviations from regularity can be ascribed to line of sight geometrical effects alone. Cool-core clusters, while a somewhat different population, also show the same (<10%) scatter in the gas mass-lensing mass relation. There is a good correlation and a hint of bimodality in the plane defined by BCG offset and central entropy (or central cooling time). The pseudo-pressure YX does not discriminate between the more relaxed and less relaxed populations, making it perhaps the more even-handed mass proxy for surveys. Overall, hydrostatic masses underestimate weak lensing masses by 10% on the average at ; but cool-core clusters are consistent with no bias, while non-cool-core clusters have a large and constant 15%-20% bias between and , in agreement with N-body simulations incorporating unthermalized gas. For non-cool-core clusters, the bias correlates well with BCG ellipticity. We also examine centroid shift variance and power ratios to quantify substructure; these quantities do not correlate with residuals in the scaling relations. Individual clusters have for the most part forgotten the source of their departures from self-similarity.

Evidence for non‐hydrostatic gas from the cluster X‐ray to lensing mass ratio

Using a uniform analysis procedure, we measure spatially resolved weak gravitational lensing and hydrostatic X-ray masses for a sample of 18 clusters of galaxies. We find a radial trend in the X-ray to lensing mass ratio: at r 2500 , we obtain a ratio M X /M L = 1.03 ± 0.07 which decreases to M X /M L = 0.78 ± 0.09 at r 500 . This difference is significant at 3a once we account for correlations between the measurements. We show that correcting the lensing mass for excess correlated structure outside the virial radius slightly reduces, but does not eliminate this trend. An X-ray mass underestimate, perhaps due to non-thermal pressure support, can explain the residual trend. The trend is not correlated with the presence or absence of a cool core. We also examine the cluster gas fraction f gas and find no correlation with M L , an important result for techniques that aim to determine cosmological parameters using f gas .

The Canadian Cluster Comparison Project : detailed study of systematics and updated weak lensing masses

Masses of clusters of galaxies from weak gravitational lensing analyses of ever larger samples are increasingly used as the reference to which baryonic scaling relations are compared. In this paper we revisit the analysis of a sample of 50 clusters studied as part of the Canadian Cluster Comparison Project. We examine the key sources of systematic error in cluster masses. We quantify the robustness of our shape measurements and calibrate our algorithm empirically using extensive image simulations. The source redshift distribution is revised using the latest state-of-the-art photometric redshift catalogs that include new deep near-infrared observations. Nonetheless we find that the uncertainty in the determination of photometric redshifts is the largest source of systematic error for our mass estimates. We use our updated masses to determine b, the bias in the hydrostatic mass, for the clusters detected by Planck. Our results suggest 1-b=0.76+-0.05(stat)}+-0.06(syst)}, which does not resolve the tension with the measurements from the primary cosmic microwave background.

Resurrecting the red from the dead: optical properties of BCGs in X-ray luminous clusters

We present measurements of surface brightness and colour profiles for the brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) in a sample of 48 X-ray luminous galaxy clusters. These data were obtained as part of the Canadian Cluster Comparison Project (CCCP). The Kormendy relation of our BCGs is steeper than that of the local ellipticals, suggesting differences in the assembly history of these types of systems. We also find that while most BCGs show monotonic colour gradients consistent with a decrease in metallicity with radius, 25 per cent of the BCGs show colour profiles that turn bluer towards the centre (blue cores). We interpret this bluing trend as evidence for recent star formation. The excess blue light leads to a typical offset from the red sequence of 0.5 to 1.0 mag in (g � − r � ), thus affecting optical cluster studies that may reject the BCG based on colour. All of the blue-core BCGs are located within ∼10 kpc of the peak in the cluster X-ray emission. Furthermore, virtually all of the BCGs with recent star formation are in clusters that lie above the Lx–T x relation. Based on photometry alone, these findings suggest that central star formation is a ubiquitous feature of BCGs in dynamically relaxed cool-core clusters. This implies that while active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and other heating mechanisms are effective at tempering cooling, they do not full compensate for the energy lost via radiation.

The Canadian Cluster Comparison Project: weak lensing masses and SZ scaling relations

The Canadian Cluster Comparison Project is a comprehensive multi-wavelength survey targeting 50 massive X-ray selected clusters of galaxies to examine baryonic tracers of cluster mass and to probe the cluster-to-cluster variation in the thermal properties of the hot intracluster medium. In this paper we present the weak lensing masses, based on the analysis of deep wide-field imaging data obtained using the CanadaFrance-Hawaii-Telescope. The final sample includes two additional clusters that were located in the field-of-view. We take these masses as our reference for the comparison of cluster properties at other wavelengths. In this paper we limit the comparison to published measurements of the Sunyaev-Zel’dovich effect. We find that this signal correlates well with the projected lensing mass, with an intrinsic scatter of 12±5% at � r2500, demonstrating it is an excellent proxy for cluster mass.

CLASH: Precise new constraints on the mass profile of the galaxy cluster A2261

We precisely constrain the inner mass profile of A2261 (z = 0.225) for the first time and determine that this cluster is not “overconcentrated” as found previously, implying a formation time in agreement with ΛCDM expectations. These results are based on multiple strong-lensing analyses of new 16-band Hubble Space Telescope imaging obtained as part of the Cluster Lensing and Supernova survey with Hubble. Combining this with revised weaklensing analyses of Subaru wide-field imaging with five-band Subaru + KPNO photometry, we place tight new constraints on the halo virial mass Mvir = (2.2 ± 0.2) × 1015 M h−1 70 (within rvir ≈ 3 Mpc h−1 70 ) and concentration cvir = 6.2 ± 0.3 when assuming a spherical halo. This agrees broadly with average c(M, z) predictions from recent ΛCDM simulations, which span 58. Our most significant systematic uncertainty is halo elongation along the line of sight (LOS). To estimate this, we also derive a mass profile based on archival Chandra X-ray observations and find it to be ∼35% lower than our lensing-derived profile at r2500 ∼ 600 kpc. Agreement can be achieved by a halo elongated with a ∼2:1 axis ratio along our LOS. For this elongated halo model, we find Mvir = (1.7 ± 0.2) × 1015 M h−1 70 and cvir = 4.6 ± 0.2, placing rough lower limits on these values. The need for halo elongation can be partially obviated by non-thermal pressure support and, perhaps entirely, by systematic errors in the X-ray mass measurements. We estimate the effect of background structures based on MMT/Hectospec spectroscopic redshifts and find that these tend to lower Mvir further by ∼7% and increase cvir by ∼5%. Ke

The RASSCALS: An X-Ray and Optical Study of 260 Galaxy Groups

We describe the ROSAT All-Sky SurveyCenter for Astrophysics Loose Systems (RASSCALS), the largest X-ray and optical survey of low-mass galaxy groups to date. We draw 260 groups from the com- bined Center for Astrophysics and Southern Sky Redshift Surveys, covering one-quarter of the sky to a limiting Zwicky magnitude of We detect 61 groups (23%) as extended X-ray sources. The m z \ 15.5. statistical completeness of the sample allows us to make the —rst measurement of the X-ray selection function of groups, along with a clean determination of their fundamental scaling laws. We —nd robust evidence of similarity breaking in the relationship between the X-ray luminosity and velocity dispersion. Groups with km s~1 are overluminous by several orders of magnitude compared to the fam- p p \ 340 iliar law for higher velocity dispersion systems. An understanding of this break depends on the L X P p4 detailed structure of groups with small velocity dispersions km s~1. After accounting for selec- p p \ 150 tion eUects, we conclude that only 40% of the optical groups are extended X-ray sources. The remaining 60% are either accidental superpositions or systems devoid of X-ray emitting gas. Combining our results with group statistics from N-body simulations, we —nd that the fraction of real, bound systems in our objectively selected optical catalog is between 40%¨80%. The X-ray detections have a median member- ship of nine galaxies, a median recession velocity cz \ 7250 km s~1, a median projected velocity disper- sion km s~1, and a median X-ray luminosity

Optical spectroscopy of type Ia supernovae

We present 432 low-dispersion optical spectra of 32 Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) that also have well-calibrated light curves. The coverage ranges from 6 epochs to 36 epochs of spectroscopy. Most of the data were obtained with the 1.5 m Tillinghast telescope at the F. L. Whipple Observatory with typical wavelength coverage of 3700-7400 A and a resolution of ~7 A. The earliest spectra are 13 days before B-band maximum; two-thirds of the SNe were observed before maximum brightness. Coverage for some SNe continues almost to the nebular phase. The consistency of the method of observation and the technique of reduction makes this an ideal data set for studying the spectroscopic diversity of SNe Ia.

CLASH-X: A comparison of lensing and X-ray techniques for measuring the mass profiles of galaxy clusters

We present profiles of temperature, gas mass, and hydrostatic mass estimated from new and archival X-ray observations of CLASH clusters. We compare measurements derived from XMM and Chandra observations with one another and compare both to gravitational lensing mass profiles derived with CLASH Hubble Space Telescope and Subaru Telescope lensing data. Radial profiles of Chandra and XMM measurements of electron density and enclosed gas mass are nearly identical, indicating that differences in hydrostatic masses inferred from X-ray observations arise from differences in gas-temperature measurements. Encouragingly, gas temperatures measured in clusters by XMM and Chandra are consistent with one another at ~100–200 kpc radii, but XMM temperatures systematically decline relative to Chandra temperatures at larger radii. The angular dependence of the discrepancy suggests that additional investigation on systematics such as the XMM point-spread function correction, vignetting, and off-axis responses is yet required. We present the CLASH-X mass-profile comparisons in the form of cosmology-independent and redshift-independent circular-velocity profiles. We argue that comparisons of circular-velocity profiles are the most robust way to assess mass bias. Ratios of Chandra hydrostatic equilibrium (HSE) mass profiles to CLASH lensing profiles show no obvious radial dependence in the 0.3–0.8 Mpc range. However, the mean mass biases inferred from the weak-lensing (WL) and SaWLens data are different. As an example, the weighted-mean value at 0.5 Mpc is 〈b〉 = 0.12 for the WL comparison and 〈b〉 = −0.11 for the SaWLens comparison. The ratios of XMM HSE mass profiles to CLASH lensing profiles show a pronounced radial dependence in the 0.3–1.0 Mpc range, with a weighted mean mass bias value rising to 〈b〉 gsim 0.3 at ~1 Mpc for the WL comparison and 〈b〉 ≈ 0.25 for the SaWLens comparison. The enclosed gas mass profiles from both Chandra and XMM rise to a value ≈1/8 times the total-mass profiles inferred from lensing at ≈0.5 Mpc and remain constant outside of that radius, suggesting that M_gas × 8 profiles may be an excellent proxy for total-mass profiles at ≳ 0.5 Mpc in massive galaxy clusters.