Related papers: Observational Cosmology
According to the Cosmological Principle, the matter distribution on very large scales should have a kinematic dipole that is aligned with that of the CMB. We determine the dipole anisotropy in the number counts of two all-sky surveys of…
We give an account, at non-expert and quantitative level, of physics behind the CMB temperature anisotropy and polarization and their peculiar features. We discuss, in particular, how cosmological parameters are determined from the CMB…
This article is the written version of the closing talk presented at the conference `A Century of Cosmology' held at San Servolo, Italy, in August 2007. I focus on the prospects of constraining fundamental physics from cosmological…
While many observations support the validity of Einstein's general relativity as the theory of gravity, there are yet many that suggest the presence of new physics. In order to explain the high-redshift supernovae Ia observations together…
This lecture is an introduction to cosmological tests with clusters of galaxies. Here I do not intend to provide a complete review of the subject, but rather to describe the basic procedures to set up the fitting machinery to constrain…
In this review, we outline the expected tests of gravity that will be achieved at cosmological scales in the upcoming decades. We focus mainly on constraints on phenomenologically parameterized deviations from general relativity, which…
I review the standard paradigm for understanding the formation and evolution of cosmic structure, based on the gravitational instability of dark matter, but many variations on this basic theme are viable. Despite the great progress that has…
In these lectures I focus on early universe models which can explain the currently observed structure on large scales. I begin with a survey of inflationary cosmology, the current paradigm for understanding the origin of the universe as we…
Loop quantum cosmology is a conflicted field in which exuberant claims of observability coexist with serious objections against the conceptual and physical viability of its current formulations. This contribution presents a non-technical…
The distance-redshift relation depends on the amount of matter of each type in the universe. Measurements at different redshifts constrain differing combinations of these matter densities and thus may be used in combination to constrain…
The Hubble diagram is one of the cornerstones of observational cosmology. It is usually analysed assuming that, on average, the underlying relation between magnitude and redshift matches the prediction of a…
For more that seventy years, the measurements of fluxes of galaxies at different wavelengths and derived colours have been used to estimate their corresponding cosmological distances. From the fields of galaxy and AGN evolution to precision…
Following the recent measurement of the acoustic peak by the BOOMERanG and MAXIMA experiments in the CMB anisotropy angular power spectrum, many analyses have found that the geometry of the Universe is very close to flat, but slightly…
The main task for cosmology today is the completion of the program of cosmological tests that commenced in the 1930s. I offer comments on the state of the program and the issues to be addressed to establish a convincing large-scale picture…
In this thesis, I present three projects I carried out during m PhD. In the first project, I introduce Conformal Transformations and the Galaxy Number County. I explicitly show that the Galaxy Number Counts is invariant under Conformal…
We propose a method of testing source evolution theories that is independent of the effects of inhomogeneity, and thus complementary to other studies of evolution. It is suitable for large scale sky surveys, and the new generation of large…
The $\Lambda$CDM cosmology passes demanding tests that establish it as a good approximation to reality, but it could be improved. I present a list of possibly interesting and less well explored things that might yield hints to a better…
The cosmological principle asserts that the Universe is homogeneous and isotropic on large enough scales. However, alternative cosmological models can bring about anisotropies through local inhomogeneities, anisotropic evolution, or exotic…
Much attention has been given to the problem of estimating cosmological parameters from the $C_l$ measured by future experiments. Many of the approaches which are being used either invoke poorly controlled approximations or are…
Cosmological observations offer unique and robust avenues for probing the fundamental nature of dark matter particles-they broadly test a range of compelling theoretical scenarios, often surpassing or complementing the reach of terrestrial…