Ulrich Hopp

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey - II:supernova survey: technical summary

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey-II (SDSS-II) has embarked on a multi-year project to identify and measure light curves for intermediate-redshift (0.05 < z < 0.35) Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) using repeated five-band (ugriz) imaging over an area of 300 sq. deg. The survey region is a stripe 2.5° wide centered on the celestial equator in the Southern Galactic Cap that has been imaged numerous times in earlier years, enabling construction of a deep reference image for the discovery of new objects. Supernova imaging observations are being acquired between September 1 and November 30 of 2005-7. During the first two seasons, each region was imaged on average every five nights. Spectroscopic follow-up observations to determine supernova type and redshift are carried out on a large number of telescopes. In its first two three-month seasons, the survey has discovered and measured light curves for 327 spectroscopically confirmed SNe Ia, 30 probable SNe Ia, 14 confirmed SNe Ib/c, 32 confirmed SNe II, plus a large number of photometrically identified SNe Ia, 94 of which have host-galaxy spectra taken so far. This paper provides an overview of the project and briefly describes the observations completed during the first two seasons of operation.

OmegaCAM: wide-field imaging with fine spatial resolution

OmegaCAM is the wide-field camera for the VLT Survey Telescope being completed for ESOs Paranal observatory. The instrument, as well as the telescope, have been designed for very good, natural seeing-limited image quality over a 1 degree field. At the heart of the project are a square-foot photometric shutter, a 12-filter storage/exchange mechanism, a 16k x 16k CCD detector mosaic, and plenty of software for instrument control and data handling, analysis and archiving.

The Munich Near-Infrared Cluster Survey (MUNICS). VI. The Stellar Masses of K-Band-selected Field Galaxies to z ~ 1.2

We present a measurement of the evolution of the stellar mass function in four redshift bins at 0.4 0 to estimates obtained similarly at z = 0. We find that the mass-to-light ratios in the K band decline with redshift. This decline is similar for all stellar masses above 1010 h-2 M☉. Lower mass galaxies have lower mass-to-light ratios at all redshifts. The stellar mass function evolves significantly to z = 1.2. The total normalization decreases by a factor of ~2, the characteristic mass (the knee) shifts toward lower masses, and the bright end therefore steepens with redshift. The amount of number density evolution is a strong function of stellar mass, with more massive systems showing faster evolution than less massive systems. We discuss the total stellar mass density of the universe and compare our results to the values from the literature at both lower and higher redshifts. We find that the stellar mass density at z ~ 1 is roughly 50% of the local value. Our results imply that the mass assembly of galaxies continues well after z ~ 1. Our data favor a scenario in which the growth of the most massive galaxies is dominated by accretion and merging rather than star formation, which plays a larger role in the growth of less massive systems.

Extremely compact massive galaxies at z ∼ 1.4

The optical rest-frame sizes of 10 of the most massive (∼5 × 10 11 h −2 M� ) galaxies found in the near-infrared MUNICS survey at 1.2 < z < 1.7 are analysed. Sizes are estimated in both the J and Kfilters. These massive galaxies are at least a factor of 4 +1.9 (±1σ ) smaller in the rest-frame V-band than local counterparts of the same stellar mass. Consequently, the stellar mass density of these objects is (at least) 60 times larger than that of massive ellipticals today. Although the stellar populations of these objects are passively fading, their structural properties are rapidly changing since that redshift. This observational fact disagrees with a scenario where the more massive and passive galaxies are fully assembled at z ∼ 1.4 (i.e. a monolithic scenario) and points towards a dry merger scenario as the responsible mechanism for the subsequent evolution of these galaxies.

The Stellar Mass Function of Galaxies to z ~ 5 in the FORS Deep and GOODS-South Fields

We present a measurement of the evolution of the stellar mass function (MF) of galaxies and the evolution of the total stellar mass density at 0 1010 M☉, which are the likely progenitors of todays L > L* galaxies, are found in much smaller numbers above z ~ 2. However, we note that massive galaxies with M > 1011 M☉ are present even to the largest redshift we probe. Beyond z ~ 2, the evolution of the MF becomes more rapid. We find that the total stellar mass density at z = 1 is 50% of the local value. At z = 2, 25% of the local mass density is assembled, and at z = 3 and z = 5, we find that at least 15% and 5% of the mass in stars is in place, respectively. The number density of galaxies with M > 1011 M☉ evolves very similarly to the evolution at lower masses. It decreases by 0.4 dex to z ~ 1, by 0.6 dex to z ~ 2, and by 1 dex to z ~ 4.

The HETDEX pilot survey - II. The evolution of the Lyα escape fraction from the ultraviolet slope and luminosity function of 1.9 < z < 3.8 LAEs

We study the escape of Lyα photons from Lyα emitting galaxies (LAEs) and the overall galaxy population using a sample of 99 LAEs at 1.9 (3-6) × 1042 erg s–1 (0.25-0.5 L*), have a mean E(B – V) = 0.13 ± 0.01, implying an attenuation of ~70% in the UV. They show a median UV uncorrected SFR = 11 M ☉ yr–1, dust-corrected SFR = 34 M ☉ yr–1, and Lyα equivalent widths (EWs) which are consistent with normal stellar populations. We measure a median Lyα escape fraction of 29%, with a large scatter and values ranging from a few percent to 100%. The Lyα escape fraction in LAEs correlates with E(B – V) in a way that is expected if Lyα photons suffer from similar amounts of dust extinction as UV continuum photons. This result implies that a strong enhancement of the Lyα EW with dust, due to a clumpy multi-phase interstellar medium (ISM), is not a common process in LAEs at these redshifts. It also suggests that while in other galaxies Lyα can be preferentially quenched by dust due to its scattering nature, this is not the case in LAEs. We find no evolution in the average dust content and Lyα escape fraction of LAEs from z ~ 4 to 2. We see hints of a drop in the number density of LAEs from z ~ 4 to 2 in the redshift distribution and the Lyα luminosity function, although larger samples are required to confirm this. The mean Lyα escape fraction of the overall galaxy population decreases significantly from z ~ 6 to z ~ 2, in agreement with recent results. Our results point toward a scenario in which star-forming galaxies build up significant amounts of dust in their ISM between z ~ 6 and 2, reducing their Lyα escape fraction, with LAE selection preferentially detecting galaxies which have the highest escape fractions given their dust content. The fact that a large escape of Lyα photons is reached by z ~ 6 implies that better constraints on this quantity at higher redshifts might detect re-ionization in a way that is uncoupled from the effects of dust.

The Kormendy relation of massive elliptical galaxies at z∼ 1.5: evidence for size evolution

We present the morphological analysis based on HST-NIC2 (0.075 arcsec pixel -1 ) images in the F160W filter of a sample of nine massive field (>10 11 M ⊙ ) galaxies spectroscopically classified as early-types at 1.2 < z < 1.7. Our analysis shows that all of them are bulge-dominated systems. In particular, six of them are well fitted by a de Vaucouleurs profile (n = 4) suggesting that they can be considered pure elliptical galaxies. The remaining three galaxies are better fitted by a Sersic profile with index 1.9 < n fit < 2.3 suggesting that a disc-like component could contribute up to 30 per cent to the total light of these galaxies. We derived the effective radius R e and the mean surface brightness (SB) (μ) e within R e of our galaxies and we compared them with those of early-types at lower redshifts. We find that the SB (μ) e of our galaxies should get fainter by 2.5 mag from z ∼ 1.5 to ∼0 to match the SB of the local ellipticals with comparable R e , that is, the local Kormendy relation. Luminosity evolution without morphological changes can only explain half of this effect, as the maximum dimming expected for an elliptical galaxy is ∼ 1.6 mag in this redshift range. Thus, other parameters, possibly structural, may undergo evolution and play an important role in reconciling models and observations. Hypothesizing an evolution of the effective radius of galaxies we find that R e should increase by a factor of 1.5 from z ∼ 1.5 to ∼0.

Specific Star Formation Rates to Redshift 5 from the FORS Deep Field and the GOODS-S Field*

We explore the buildup of stellar mass in galaxies over the wide redshift range 0.4 < z < 5.0 by studying the evolution of the specific star formation rate (SSFR), defined as the star formation rate per unit stellar mass, as a function of stellar mass and age. Our work is based on a combined sample of ~9000 galaxies from the FORS Deep Field and the GOODS-S field, providing high statistical accuracy and relative insensitivity against cosmic variance. As at lower redshifts, we find that lower mass galaxies show higher SSFRs than higher mass galaxies, although highly obscured galaxies remain undetected in our sample. Furthermore, the highest mass galaxies contain the oldest stellar populations at all redshifts, in principle agreement with the existence of evolved, massive galaxies at 1 < z < 3. It is remarkable, however, that this trend continues to very high redshifts of z ~ 4. We also show that with increasing redshift, the SSFR for massive galaxies increases by a factor of ~10, reaching the era of their formation at z ~ 2 and beyond. These findings can be interpreted as evidence for an early epoch of star formation in the most massive galaxies and for ongoing star formation activity in lower mass galaxies.

Exploring Cluster Elliptical Galaxies as Cosmological Standard Rods

We explore the possibility of calibrating massive cluster elliptical galaxies as cosmological standard rods using the fundamental plane relation combined with a correction for luminosity evolution. Although cluster ellipticals certainly formed in a complex way, their passive evolution out to redshifts of about 1 indicates that basically all major merging and accretion events took place at higher redshifts. Therefore, a calibration of their luminosity evolution can be attempted. We propose to use the Mg-? relation for that purpose because it is independent of distance and cosmology. We discuss a variety of possible caveats, ranging from dynamical evolution to uncertainties in stellar population models and evolution corrections to the presence of age spread. Sources of major random and systematic errors are analyzed as well. We apply the described procedure to nine elliptical galaxies in two clusters at z = 0.375 and derive constraints on the cosmological model. For the best-fitting ?-free cosmological model we obtain q0 ? 0.1, with 90% confidence limits being 0 < q0 < 0.7 (the lower limit being due to the presence of matter in the universe). If the inflationary scenario applies (i.e., the universe has flat geometry), then, for the best-fitting model, matter and ? contribute about equally to the critical cosmic density (i.e., ?m ? ?? ? 0.5). With 90% confidence, ?? should be smaller than 0.9.

THE HETDEX PILOT SURVEY. I. SURVEY DESIGN, PERFORMANCE, AND CATALOG OF EMISSION-LINE GALAXIES

We present a catalog of emission-line galaxies selected sol ly by their emission-line fluxes using a wide-field integral field spectrograph. This work is partially motivat ed as a pilot survey for the upcoming Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX). We describe the observations, reductions, detections, redshift classifications, line fluxes, and counterpart information f r 397 emission-line galaxies detected over 169 ⊓⊔ with a 3500-5800̊A bandpass under 5̊ A full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) spectral resolution. Th e survey’s best sensitivity for unresolved objects under photometric conditions is between 4− 20× 10 erg s cm depending on the wavelength, and Ly α luminosities between3− 6× 10 erg s are detectable. This survey method complements narrowband and color-selection techni ques in the search for high redshift galaxies with its different selection properties and large volume probed. Th e four survey fields within the COSMOS, GOODS-N, MUNICS, and XMM-LSS areas are rich with existing, complemen tary data. We find 104 galaxies via their high redshift Lyα emission at1.9 < z < 3.8, and the majority of the remainder objects are low redshift [ OII]3727 emitters atz < 0.56. The classification between low and high redshift objects de pends on rest frame equivalent width, as well as other indicators, where available. Based o n matches to X-ray catalogs, the active galactic nuclei (AGN) fraction amongst the Ly α emitters (LAEs) is 6%. We also analyze the survey’s complete ness and contamination properties through simulations. We find fi ve high-z, highly-significant, resolved objects with full-width-half-maximum sizes> 44 ⊓⊔ which appear to be extended Ly α nebulae. We also find three high-z objects with rest frame Ly α equivalent widths above the level believed to be achievable with normal star formation, EW0 > 240Å. Future papers will investigate the physical properties o f this sample. Subject headings: galaxies: formation — galaxies: evolution —galaxies: high -redshift — cosmology: observations