Award Abstract # 0909198
Galaxy Clusters at z > 1

NSF Org: AST
Division Of Astronomical Sciences
Recipient: REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT RIVERSIDE
Initial Amendment Date: August 14, 2009
Latest Amendment Date: August 14, 2009
Award Number: 0909198
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Nigel Sharp
nsharp@nsf.gov
 (703)292-4905
AST
 Division Of Astronomical Sciences
MPS
 Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Start Date: September 1, 2009
End Date: August 31, 2013 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $331,801.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $331,801.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2009 = $331,801.00
ARRA Amount: $331,801.00
History of Investigator:
  • Gillian Wilson (Principal Investigator)
    gwilson@ucmerced.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: University of California-Riverside
200 UNIVERSTY OFC BUILDING
RIVERSIDE
CA  US  92521-0001
(951)827-5535
Sponsor Congressional District: 39
Primary Place of Performance: University of California-Riverside
200 UNIVERSTY OFC BUILDING
RIVERSIDE
CA  US  92521-0001
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
39
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): MR5QC5FCAVH5
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): EXTRAGALACTIC ASTRON & COSMOLO
Primary Program Source: 01R00910DB RRA RECOVERY ACT
Program Reference Code(s): 0000, 6890, OTHR, 1207
Program Element Code(s): 121700
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.049

ABSTRACT

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).

Dr Wilson will study ten clusters of galaxies at redshift 0.87 < z < 1.34, which are seen as they were when the cosmos had expanded to only about half its present size. The clusters are chosen from a survey that combined 3.6-micron images from a 50-square degree survey with the Spitzer Space telescope with images from the ground at 900nm, to pick out the red sequence of old elliptical galaxies. These are some of the most distant galaxy clusters for which distances have been confirmed spectroscopically. Dr Wilson and her team will seek additional spectroscopy for about 50 galaxies in each cluster, calibrating the relation between cluster mass and richness for comparison with cosmological simulations of early galaxy formation. Additional optical images will provide a total of 10 color-bands in the optical and near-infrared, which will be used to estimate the rate of star formation (both dust-obscured and otherwise) and the stellar masses present in each galaxy. The PI also seeks near-infrared spectroscopy for more distant candidate clusters in the 'redshift desert' between 1.5 < z < 2; these would be the first confirmed clusters in this redshift range. This sample of clusters is especially valuable for comparison with models, because it is selected in a quantifiable way, but one that is different from that for X-ray-selected clusters.

A graduate student will be trained by participating in the research. Dr Wilson will integrate results of this research into her undergraduate teaching, and will continue her work in teacher-education and public-outreach programs. Data products will be distributed on the web.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

Note:  When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a charge during the embargo (administrative interval).

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site.

Hildebrandt, H., Muzzin, A., Erben, T., Hoekstra, H., Kuijken, K., Surace. J., van Waerbeke, L., Wilson, G., & Yee, H. K. C "Lensing Magnification: A Novel Method to Weigh High-Redshift Clusters and Application to SpARCS" The Astrophysical Journal , v.733 , 2011 , p.L30
Lidman, C., Iacobuta, G., Bauer, A. E., Cerulo, P., Couch, W. J., Delaye, L., Demarco, R., Huertas-Company, R., Mei, S., Meyers, J., Muzzin, A., Noble, A, Nantais, J., Rettura, A., Rosati, P., Sanchez-Janssen, R, Strazzullo, V., Webb, T. M. A., Wilson, G. ""The importance of major mergers in the build up of stellar mass in brightest cluster galaxies at z=1"" Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society , v.433 , 2013
Lidman, C., Suherli, J., Muzzin A., Wilson G, Demarco, R., Brough, S., Rettura, A., Cox., J., DeGroot, A., Yee, H. K. C., Gilbank, D., Hoekstra, H., Balogh, M., Ellingson, E., Hicks, A., Nantais, J., Noble, A., Lacy, M., Surace J., and Webb, T. ""Evidence for Significant Growth in the Stellar Mass of Brightest Cluster Galaxies over the Past 10 Billion Years"" Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society , v.427 , 2012
Muzzin, A., Wilson G, Demarco, R., Lidman, C., Nantais, J., Hoekstra, H., Yee, H. K. C. & Rettura, A. ""Discovery of a Rich Cluster at z = 1.63 Using the Rest-frame 1.6 micron ''Stellar Bump Sequence'' Method"" The Astrophysical Journal , v.767 , 2013
Muzzin A., Wilson G., Yee H. K. C., Gilbank, D., Hoekstra, H., Demarco, R., Balogh, M., van Dokkum, P., Franx., M., Ellingson, E., Hicks, A., Nantais, J., Noble, A., Lacy, M., Lidman, C., Rettura, A., Surace J., and Webb, T. ""The Gemini Cluster Astrophysics Spectroscopic Survey (GCLASS): The Role of Environment and Self-regulation in Galaxy Evolution at z ~ 1''" The Astrophysical Journal , v.746 , 2012
Muzzin A., Wilson G., Yee H. K. C., Gilbank D., Hoekstra H., Surace J., Demarco R., Balogh, M., van Dokkum, P., Franz, M., Ellingson, E., Hicks, A., Nantais, J., Noble, A., Lacy, M., Lidman, C., Rettura, A., Surace, J., & Webb, "THE GEMINI CLUSTER ASTROPHYSICS SPECTROSCOPIC SURVEY (GCLASS): THE ROLE OF ENVIRONMENT AND SELF-REGULATION IN GALAXY EVOLUTION AT z â?¼ 1" The Astrophysical Journal , v.746 , 2012 , p.188
Noble, A. G., Webb, T. M. A., Muzzin, A., Wilson, G, Yee, H. K. C., van der Berg, R. F. J. ""A Kinematic Approach To Assessing Environmental Effects: Star-Forming Galaxies in a z~0.9 SpARCS cluster using Spitzer 24 micron Observations"" The Astrophysical Journal , v.768 , 2013
Ricardo Demarco, Gillian Wilson, Adam Muzzin, Mark Lacy, Jason Surace, H. K. C. Yee, Henk Hoekstra, Kris Blindert, and David Gilbank "Spectroscopic Confirmation of Three Red-Sequence Selected Galaxy Clusters at z = 0.87, 1.16 and 1.21 from the SpARCS Survey" The Astrophysical Journal , v.711 , 2010 , p.1185
van der Burg, R., Muzzin A., Hoekstra, H., Lidman, C., Rettura, A., Wilson, G, Yee, H. K. C., Hildebrandt, H. Marchesini, Stefanon, D. M., Demarco, R. & Kuijken, K. ""The environmental dependence of the stellar mass function at z ~ 1. Comparing cluster and field between the GCLASS and UltraVISTA surveys"" Astronomy & Astrophysics , v.557 , 2013
Webb, T. M. A., O'Donnell, D.; Yee, H. K. C.; Gilbank, David; Coppin, Kristen; Ellingson, Erica; Faloon, Ashley; Geach, James E.; Gladders, Mike; Noble, Allison; Muzzin, Adam; Wilson, Gillian; Yan, Renbin ""The Evolution of Dusty Star formation in Galaxy Clusters to z = 1: Spitzer Infrared Observations of the First Red-Sequence Cluster Survey"" The Astronomical Journal , v.146 , 2013

Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.

Print this page

Back to Top of page