Related papers: GAIA and the Extragalactic Distance Scale
There is an $\approx9\pm2.5$\% tension between the value of Hubble's Constant, $H_0=67.4\pm0.5$km\,s$^{-1}$Mpc$^{-1}$, implied by the {\it Planck} microwave background power spectrum and that given by the distance scale of…
We discuss the impact that Gaia, a European Space Agency (ESA) cornerstone mission that has been in scientific operations since July 2014, is expected to have on the definition of the cosmic distance ladder and the study of resolved stellar…
We present a comparison of Gaia Data Release 1 (DR1) parallaxes with photometric parallaxes for a sample of 212 Galactic Cepheids at a median distance of 2~kpc, and explore their implications on the distance scale and the local value of the…
The extragalactic distance scale relies heavily on Cepheids. However, it has become clear from observations and pulsation models that the slope and zero point of their P-L relations differ from galaxy to galaxy. This makes the determination…
The local expansion field is mapped using Cepheids, a complete sample of TF distances, and nearby cluster distances. The large-scale field is mapped using Cepheid-calibrated blue SNeIa. These data give Ho(local)=59.2+/-1.4 [km/s Mpc^-1] and…
We present a systematic analysis of the cosmological constraints from the "Pantheon Sample" of 1048 Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) in the redshift range $0.01<z<2.3$ compiled by Scolnic et al. (2018). Applying the flux-averaging method for…
Any calibration of the present value of the Hubble constant requires recession velocities and distances of galaxies. While the conversion of observed velocities into true recession velocities has only a small effect on the result, the…
We review the use of Type Ia supernovae for cosmological distance determinations. Low-redshift SNe Ia (z < 0.1) demonstrate that (a) the Hubble expansion is linear, (b) H_0 = 65 +/- 2 (statistical) km/s/Mpc, (c) the bulk motion of the Local…
We present an expanded sample of 75 Milky Way Cepheids with Hubble Space Telescope (HST) photometry and Gaia EDR3 parallaxes which we use to recalibrate the extragalactic distance ladder and refine the determination of the Hubble constant.…
This is the fifth and final summary paper of our 15 year program using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) to determine the Hubble constant using Type Ia supernovae, calibrated with Cepheid variables in nearby galaxies that hosted them.…
I discuss the use of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) for cosmological distance determinations. Low-redshift SNe Ia (z < 0.1) demonstrate that the Hubble expansion is linear with H_0 = 72 +/- 8 km/s/Mpc, and that the properties of dust in other…
GAIA is a short-listed candidate for the ESA Cornerstone mission C5, meeting the ESA Survey Committee requirement for an observatory mission, dedicated to astrometry, providing 10 micro-arcsecond accuracy at 15th magnitude. The GAIA mission…
New estimates of the distances of 36 nearby galaxies are presented based on accurate distances of galactic Cepheids obtained by Gieren, Fouque and Gomez (1998) from the geometrical Barnes-Evans method. The concept of 'sosie' is applied to…
We investigate the potential of using a sample of very high-redshift ($2\lesssim z \lesssim6$) (VHZ) Type Ia supernovae (SNe~Ia) attainable by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on constraining cosmological parameters. At such high…
We present HST photometry of a selected sample of 50 long-period, low-extinction Milky Way Cepheids measured on the same WFC3 F555W, F814W, and F160W-band photometric system as extragalactic Cepheids in SN Ia hosts. These bright Cepheids…
The distribution of high redshift Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) with respect to projected distance from the center of the host galaxy is studied and compared to the distribution of local SNe. The distribution of high-z SNe Ia is found to be…
We give an overview of the current understanding of Type Ia supernovae relevant for their use as cosmological distance indicators. We present the physical basis to understand their homogeneity of the observed light curves and spectra and…
We present Hubble Space Telescope measurements of surface brightness fluctuations (SBF) distances to early-type galaxies that have hosted Type Ia supernovae (SNIa). The agreement in the relative SBF and SNIa multicolor light curve shape and…
Classical Cepheids provide the foundation for the empirical extragalactic distance ladder. Milky Way Cepheids are the only stars in this class accessible to trigonometric parallax measurements. However, the parallaxes of Cepheids from the…
Distance ladders which calibrate the luminosity of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) currently provide the strongest constraints on the local value of H0. Recent studies from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)…