Collaborative Research: Cross-correlation of WISE quasars with the Planck CMB lensing maps: A new probe of black holes and large-scale structure

合作研究：WISE 类星体与普朗克 CMB 透镜图的互相关：黑洞和大尺度结构的新探测器

• 批准号: 1515364
• 负责人: Ryan Hickox
• 金额: $ 16.63万
• 依托单位: Dartmouth College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-08-01 至 2019-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1515364&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Cross; correlation; WISE

A longstanding problem in astrophysics is to understand how galaxies form and develop throughout their lifetimes. Such understanding is necessary to uncover how our Universe evolved and to gain insight into the origin of our own Milky Way Galaxy. One important aspect of understanding galaxy formation and evolution is to study supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at the centers of galaxies and how these SMBHs are linked to their host galaxies. Another major question in astrophysics involves the concept of "dark matter," an unidentified type of matter believed to have the properties of gravitation but not to emit any light (hence, "dark"). Thereby addressing two major astrophysical problems, this project aims to link SMBHs to the dark matter structure of their host galaxies.All-sky surveys with the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) and Planck cosmic microwave background (CMB) satellite have now produced groundbreaking data sets, which are used together to obtain constraints on the evolution of structure in the Universe. WISE uncovered millions of the previously "hidden" obscured quasars, rapidly growing supermassive black holes that are shrouded in gas and dust and so are not detectable using traditional ground-based optical and near-IR techniques. Recently, Planck produced the most precise all-sky map to date of dark matter structures via the lensing of the CMB. This project will combine these data sets along with ground-based imaging and spectroscopy to obtain a uniquely powerful measurement of the link between rapidly growing black holes and their host dark matter structures by cross-correlating the density field of WISE-selected quasars with the CMB lensing convergence maps obtained from Planck.In addition, this project will use astronomy to build problem-solving intuition in students through order-of-magnitude (OOM) estimation, or "Fermi Problems." Building on successful OOM activities in introductory astronomy courses at Dartmouth College, the investigators will develop OOM exercises for use at the middle, high school, and undergraduate levels, in which real-world estimation problems are combined with more abstract questions based on astronomical concepts. The investigators will organize workshops in which teacher participants learn to incorporate OOM activities in their classrooms and help develop new OOM exercises. Both Dartmouth and the University of Wyoming are located in rural areas, and the investigators will focus on under-resourced schools. By developing OOM exercises and instructing teachers in implementing them in their classrooms, this project will serve to foster students' problem-solving intuition. These skills are particularly useful when applying scientific or mathematical thinking to real-world problems, and success in problem solving will help create enthusiasm and future opportunities for students in STEM. The exercises and teacher reference materials produced by this program will be disseminated to the wider educational community via the web, conferences, and publications, providing a resource for all interested instructors at multiple levels to incorporate OOM activities into their classrooms.This project will (1) produce the first all-sky measurement of quasar clustering bias using the WISE and Planck data, and (2) directly compare the halo masses of obscured and unobscured quasars, using wide-area deep optical imaging from the Dark Energy Survey (DES) and SDSS, and measure the evolution of those biases with redshift, using a technique independent of spatial clustering. This project will enable a significant step forward in our understanding of the cosmic evolution of black holes and their host halos, and will yield valuable tools for future studies with WISE, Planck, and upcoming ground-based surveys.

天体物理学中的一个长期问题是了解星系在其一生中是如何形成和发展的。这样的理解对于揭示我们的宇宙是如何进化的以及洞察我们银河系的起源是必要的。理解星系形成和演化的一个重要方面是研究星系中心的超大质量黑洞(SMBH)，以及这些SMBH是如何与其宿主星系联系在一起的。天体物理学的另一个主要问题涉及“暗物质”的概念，这是一种被认为具有引力性质但不发出任何光的不明物质(因此称为“暗物质”)。为了解决两个主要的天体物理问题，该项目旨在将SMBH与其所在星系的暗物质结构联系起来。利用广域红外巡天探测器(WISE)和普朗克宇宙微波背景(CMB)卫星进行的所有天空调查现在已经产生了突破性的数据集，这些数据集一起用于获得对宇宙结构演化的限制。WISE发现了数百万个以前被遮蔽的类星体，它们是快速增长的超大质量黑洞，被气体和尘埃笼罩着，因此无法使用传统的地面光学和近红外技术进行探测。最近，普朗克通过CMB的透镜制作了迄今为止最精确的暗物质结构全天图。这个项目将把这些数据集与地面成像和光谱学结合起来，通过将精选类星体的密度场与从普朗克获得的CMB透镜会聚图相互关联，获得快速增长的黑洞与其所在暗物质结构之间的独特强大的测量结果。此外，该项目将利用天文学通过数量级(OOM)估计，即“费米问题”，在学生中建立解决问题的直觉。在达特茅斯学院天文学入门课程中成功的OOM活动的基础上，研究人员将开发OOM练习，用于初中、高中和本科水平，在这些练习中，真实世界的估计问题与基于天文概念的更抽象的问题相结合。调查人员将组织研讨会，让教师参与者学习如何将OOM活动融入他们的课堂，并帮助开发新的OOM练习。达特茅斯大学和怀俄明大学都位于农村地区，调查人员将重点调查资源不足的学校。通过开发OOM练习并指导教师在课堂上实施，该项目将有助于培养学生解决问题的直觉。这些技能在将科学或数学思维应用于现实世界的问题时特别有用，成功解决问题将有助于为STEM学生创造热情和未来的机会。该计划制作的练习和教师参考材料将通过网络、会议和出版物分发给更广泛的教育界，为各级感兴趣的教师提供资源，将OOM活动纳入他们的课堂。该项目将(1)利用WISE和Planck数据产生第一个全天测量类星体成团偏差的数据，以及(2)利用来自暗能量调查(DES)和SDSS的广域深度光学成像，直接比较遮挡和未遮挡类星体的晕质量，并使用独立于空间聚集的技术，通过红移测量这些偏差的演化。该项目将使我们在理解黑洞及其主晕的宇宙演化方面向前迈出重要的一步，并将为未来通过WISE、普朗克和即将到来的地面调查进行研究提供宝贵的工具。