Related papers: WFMOS - Sounding the Dark Cosmos
Community access to deep (i ~ 25), highly-multiplexed optical and near-infrared multi-object spectroscopy (MOS) on 8-40m telescopes would greatly improve measurements of cosmological parameters from LSST. The largest gain would come from…
The characterisation of dark energy is one of the primary goals in cosmology especially now that many new experiments are being planned with the aim of reaching a high sensitivity on cosmological parameters. It is known that if we move away…
Understanding the Universe's origins and evolution remains one of the most fundamental challenges in modern cosmology. This white paper explores three key science priorities in this field: unravelling the physics of cosmic inflation,…
Joint studies of imaging and spectroscopic samples, informed by theory and simulations, offer the potential for comprehensive tests of the cosmological model over redshifts z<1.5. Spectroscopic galaxy samples at these redshifts can be…
WAVES is designed to study the growth of structure, mass and energy on scales of ~1 kpc to ~10 Mpc over a 7 Gyr timeline. On the largest length scales (1-10 Mpc) WAVES will measure the structures defined by groups, filaments and voids, and…
The epochs of cosmic dawn and reionisation present promising avenues for understanding the role of dark matter (DM) in our cosmos. The first galaxies that populated the Universe during these eras resided in DM halos that were much less…
The variation of the expansion rate of the Universe with time produces an evolution in the cosmological redshift of distant sources (for example quasar Lyman-$\alpha$ absorption lines), that might be directly observed by future ultra…
Surveys of galaxy clusters provide a promising method of testing models of structure formation in the universe. Within the context of our standard structure formation scenario, surveys provide measurements of the geometry of the universe…
We investigate the possibility of a dark energy component that is scaling with epochs. A phenomenological model is introduced whose energy density depends on the redshift in such a way that a smooth transition among the three dominant…
Complex astrophysical processes regulate the growth of galaxies by injecting energy and momentum into their surroundings, redistributing baryons across megaparsec scales. The clustering of matter on these scales, as measured via weak…
I review the current status of studies of the large-scale structure of the Universe using redshift surveys of galaxies and clusters of galaxies. I first summarise the advances we have made in our knowledge of the cosmography of the z<0.2…
The shape of the primordial fluctuation spectrum is probed by cosmic microwave background fluctuations which measure density fluctuations at z~1000 on scales of hundreds of Mpc and from galaxy redshift surveys, which measure structure at…
The quantity and quality of cosmic structure observations have greatly accelerated in recent years. Further leaps forward will be facilitated by imminent projects, which will enable us to map the evolution of dark and baryonic matter…
The 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey (2dFGRS) has produced a three-dimensional map of the distribution of 221,000 galaxies covering 5% of the sky and reaching out to a redshift z=0.3. This is first map of the large-scale structure in the local…
During its first ~100,000 years, the universe was a fully ionized plasma with a tight coupling by Thompson scattering between the photons and matter. The trade--off between gravitational collapse and photon pressure causes acoustic…
We propose a new approach for measuring the mass profile and shape of groups and clusters of galaxies, which uses lensing magnification of distant background galaxies. The main advantage of lensing magnification is that, unlike lensing…
The magnification of distant sources by mass clumps at lower ($z \leq 1$) redshifts is calculated analytically. The clumps are initially assumed to be galaxy group isothermal spheres with properties inferred from an extensive survey. The…
The nature of dark energy, driving the accelerated expansion of the Universe, is one of the most important issues in modern astrophysics. In order to understand this phenomenon, we need precise astrophysical probes of the universal…
Exploring the recent expansion history of the universe promises insights into the cosmological model, the nature of dark energy, and potentially clues to high energy physics theories and gravitation. We examine the extent to which precision…
The presence of dark energy in the Universe is inferred directly from the accelerated expansion of the Universe, and indirectly, from measurements of cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropy. Dark energy contributes about 2/3 of the…