Related papers: Looking for the first galaxies: Lensing or blank f…
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), scheduled for launch in 2014, is expected to revolutionize our understanding of the high-redshift Universe. Even so, many of the most interesting sources that may be hiding at redshifts z~10…
We present an analysis of the line-of-sight structure toward a sample of ten strong lensing cluster cores. Structure is traced by groups that are identified spectroscopically in the redshift range, 0.1 $\leq$ z $\leq$ 0.9, and we measure…
We propose counting peaks in weak lensing (WL) maps, as a function of their height, to probe models of dark energy and to constrain cosmological parameters. Because peaks can be identified in two-dimensional WL maps directly, they can…
The Hubble Deep Fields continue to be a valuable resource for studying the distant universe, particularly at z>2 where their comoving volume becomes large enough to encompass several hundred L* galaxies or their progenitors. Here I present…
We report the ALMA Band 7 observations of 86 Herschel sources that likely contain gravitationally-lensed galaxies. These sources are selected with relatively faint 500 $\mu$m flux densities between 15 to 85 mJy in an effort to characterize…
We calculate the expected number of gravitationally lensed optical, radio and sub-mm lensed sources on the whole sky due to foreground galaxy clusters for different cosmological models. We improve previous calculations of lensed arc…
We report the detection of weak gravitational lensing of faint, distant background galaxies by the rich, X-ray luminous cluster of galaxies MS1054-03 at z=0.83. This is the first measurement of weak lensing by a bona fide cluster at such a…
Recent weak lensing observations have pushed the use of 4 meter-class telescopes to the limits of their capabilities with exposure times exceeding several hours. The leading idea is that the surface density of faint galaxies up to very…
Most new sub-mm/mm surveys, both deep and shallow, are being targeted at rich cluster fields. I explain why, comparing surveys that have exploited weak lensing by massive foreground clusters with those done in blank fields.
The current weak lensing measurements of the large scale structure are mostly related to statistical study of background galaxy ellipticities. We consider a possibility to extend lensing studies with intrinsically unresolved sources and…
We present a novel approach for measuring the two-point correlation function of galaxies in narrow pencil beam surveys with varying depths. Our methodology is utilized to expand high-redshift galaxy clustering investigations up to $z \sim…
Cosmological surface brightness dimming of the form $(1+z)^{-4}$ affects all sources. The strong dependence of surface brightness dimming on redshift z suggests the presence of a selection bias when searching for high-redshift galaxies,…
Weak shear maps of the outer regions of clusters have been successfully used to map the distribution of mass at large radii from the cluster center. The typical smoothing lengths employed thus far preclude the systematic study of the…
Exploiting the power of gravitational lensing, the Hubble Frontier Fields (HFF) program aims at observing six massive galaxy clusters to explore the distant Universe far beyond the depth limits of blank field surveys. Using the complete…
Understanding the properties of the first generation of galaxies is an ongoing challenge in observational astrophysics. While advances in deep field observation have led to the identification of large numbers of galaxies within the Epoch of…
We introduce a framework for simultaneously investigating the structure and luminosity evolution of early-type gravitational lens galaxies. The method is based on the fundamental plane, which we interpret using the aperture mass-radius…
We present the first three galaxy clusters of a larger sample of the most X-ray luminous galaxy clusters selected from the ROSAT Bright Survey. This project, which is a systematic search for strong lensing, aims at arc statistics, mass…
Evolution in the mass function of galaxy clusters sensitively traces both the expansion history of the Universe and cosmological structure formation. Robust cluster mass determinations are a key ingredient for a reliable measurement of this…
In a recent paper, Hawkins (1997) argues on the basis of statistical studies of double-image gravitational lenses and lens candidates that a large population of dark lenses exists and that these outnumber galaxies with more normal…
The high-redshift galaxy UV luminosity function (UVLF) has become essential for understanding the formation and evolution of the first galaxies. Yet, UVLFs only measure galaxy abundances, giving rise to a degeneracy between the mean galaxy…