We present a multiwavelength study of the double radio relic cluster A1240 at z=0.195. Our Subaru-based weak lensing analysis detects three mass clumps forming a ~4 Mpc filamentary structure elongated in the north-south orientation. The northern ($M_
{200}=2.61_{-0.60}^{+0.51}times10^{14} M_{odot}$) and middle ($M_{200}=1.09_{-0.43}^{+0.34}times10^{14} M_{odot}$) mass clumps separated by ~1.3 Mpc are associated with A1240 and co-located with the X-ray peaks and cluster galaxy overdensities revealed by Chandra and MMT/Hectospec observations, respectively. The southern mass clump ($M_{200}=1.78_{-0.55}^{+0.44}times10^{14} M_{odot}$), ~1.5 Mpc to the south of the middle clump, coincides with the galaxy overdensity in A1237, the A1240 companion cluster at z=0.194. Considering the positions, orientations, and polarization fractions of the double radio relics measured by the LOFAR study, we suggest that A1240 is a post-merger binary system in the returning phase with the time-since-collision ~1.7 Gyr. With the SDSS DR16 data analysis, we also find that A1240 is embedded in the much larger-scale (~80 Mpc) filamentary structure whose orientation is in remarkable agreement with the hypothesized merger axis of A1240.
We report a discovery of a double radio relic in the cluster merger ZwCl1447.2+2619 ($z=0.376$) with uGMRT observations at $420rm~MHz$ and $700rm~MHz$. The linear sizes of the northern and southern relics are $sim0.3~$Mpc and $sim1.2~$Mpc, respective
ly, which is consistent with the theoretical expectation that a larger relic is produced in the less massive subcluster side. However, ZwCl1447.2+2619 is unlike other known double radio relic systems, where the larger relics are much more luminous by several factors. In this merger the higher surface brightness of the smaller northern relic makes its total radio luminosity comparable to that of the much larger southern relic. The surface brightness ratio $sim0.1$ between the two radio relics differs significantly from the relation observed in other double radio relic systems. From our radio spectral analysis, we find that both relics signify similar weak shocks with Mach numbers of $2.9pm0.8$ and $2.0pm0.7$ for the northern and southern relics, respectively. Moreover, the northern relic is connected to a discrete radio source with an optical counterpart, which indicates the possible presence of cosmic ray injection and re-acceleration. Therefore, we propose that this atypical surface brightness ratio can be explained with the particle acceleration efficiency precipitously dropping in the weak shock regime and/or with re-acceleration of fossil cosmic rays. Our multi-wavelength analysis and numerical simulation suggest that ZwCl1447.2+2619 is a post-merger, which has experienced a near head-on collision $sim0.7rm~Gyr$ ago.
We present an improved weak-lensing (WL) study of the high$-z$ $(z=0.87)$ merging galaxy cluster ACT-CL J0102-4915 (El Gordo) based on new wide-field Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging data. The new imaging data cover the 3.5$times$3.5 Mpc region c
entered on the cluster and enable us to detect WL signals beyond the virial radius, which was not possible in previous studies. We confirm the binary mass structure consisting of the northwestern (NW) and southeastern (SE) subclusters and the 2$sigma$ dissociation between the SE mass peak and the X-ray cool core. We obtain the mass estimates of the subclusters by simultaneously fitting two Navarro-Frenk-White (NFW) halos without employing mass-concentration relations. The masses are $M_{200c}^{NW} = 9.9^{+2.1}_{-2.2} times 10^{14} M_{sun}$ and $M_{200c}^{SE} = 6.5^{+1.9}_{-1.4} times 10^{14} M_{sun}$ for the NW and SE subclusters, respectively. The mass ratio is consistent with our previous WL study but significantly different from the previous strong lensing results. This discrepancy is attributed to the use of extrapolation in strong lensing studies because the SE component possesses a higher concentration. By superposing the two best-fit NFW halos, we determine the total mass of El Gordo to be $M_{200c} = 2.13^{+0.25}_{-0.23} times 10^{15} M_{sun}$, which is 23% lower than our previous WL result [$M_{200c} =(2.76pm0.51) times 10^{15} M_{sun}$]. Our updated mass is a more direct measurement since we are not extrapolating to $R_{200c}$ as in all previous studies. The new mass is compatible with the current $Lambda$CDM cosmology.
We introduce a novel method for reconstructing the projected matter distributions of galaxy clusters with weak-lensing (WL) data based on convolutional neural network (CNN). Training datasets are generated with ray-tracing through cosmological simula
tions. We control the noise level of the galaxy shear catalog such that it mimics the typical properties of the existing ground-based WL observations of galaxy clusters. We find that the mass reconstruction by our multi-layered CNN with the architecture of alternating convolution and trans-convolution filters significantly outperforms the traditional reconstruction methods. The CNN method provides better pixel-to-pixel correlations with the truth, restores more accurate positions of the mass peaks, and more efficiently suppresses artifacts near the field edges. In addition, the CNN mass reconstruction lifts the mass-sheet degeneracy when applied to sufficiently large fields. This implies that this CNN algorithm can be used to measure cluster masses in a model independent way for future wide-field WL surveys.
The investigation of radio relic merging galaxy clusters is strengthening our understanding of the formation and evolution of galaxy clusters, the nature of dark matter, the intracluster medium, and astrophysical particle acceleration. Each merging c
luster provides only a single view of the cluster formation process and the variety of merging clusters is vast. Clusters hosting double radio relics are rare and extremely important because they allow tight constraints on the merger scenario. We present a weak-lensing and X-ray analysis of MACSJ1752.0+4440 (z=0.365) and ZWCL1856.8+6616 (z=0.304), two double radio relic merging galaxy clusters. Our weak-lensing mass estimates show that each cluster is a major merger with approximately 1:1 mass ratio. The total mass of MACSJ1752.0+4440 (ZWCL1856.8+6616) is $M_{200}=14.7^{+3.8}_{-3.3}times10^{14} $M$_odot$ ($M_{200}=2.4^{+0.9}_{-0.7}times10^{14} $M$_odot$). We find that these two clusters have comparable features in their weak-lensing and gas distributions, even though the systems have vastly different total masses. From the likeness of the X-ray morphologies and the remarkable symmetry of the radio relics, we propose that both systems underwent nearly head-on collisions. However, revelations from the hot-gas features and our multiwavelength data analysis suggest that ZWCL1856.8+6618 is likely at a later merger phase than MACSJ1752.0+4440. We postulate that the SW radio relic in MACSJ1752.0+4440 is a result of particle re-acceleration.
While baryonic feedback is one of the most important astrophysical systematics that we need to address in order to achieve precision cosmology, few weak lensing studies have directly measured its impact on the matter power spectrum. We report measure
ment of the baryonic feedback parameter with the constraints on its lower and upper limits from cosmic shear. We use the public data from the Kilo-Degree Survey and the VISTA Kilo-Degree Infrared Galaxy Survey spanning 450 deg$^2$. Estimating both cosmological and feedback parameters simultaneously, we obtain $A_{rm b}=1.01_{-0.85}^{+0.80}$, which shows a consistency with the dark matter-only (DMO) case at the $sim1.2~sigma$ level and a tendency toward positive feedback; the $A_{rm b}=0$ ($0.81$) value corresponds to the DMO (OWLS AGN) case. Despite this full constraint of the feedback parameter, our $S_8~(equiv sigma_8 sqrt{Omega_m / 0.3})$ measurement ($0.739^{+0.036}_{- 0.035}$) shifts by only $sim6$% of the statistical error, compared to the previous measurement. When we assume the flat $Lambda$CDM cosmology favored by the Nine-Year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (Planck) result, the feedback parameter is constrained to be $A_{rm b}=1.21_{-0.54}^{+0.61}$ ($1.60_{-0.52}^{+0.53}$), which excludes the DMO case at the $sim2.2~sigma$ ($sim3.1~sigma$) level.
In the hierarchical structure formation model of the universe, galaxy clusters are assembled through a series of mergers. Accordingly, it is expected that galaxy clusters in the early universe are actively forming and dynamically young. Located at a
high redshift of z=1.71, SpARCS1049+56 offers a unique look into the galaxy cluster formation process. This cluster has been shown to be rich in cluster galaxies and to have intense star formation. Its high redshift pushes a weak-lensing analysis beyond the regime of the optical spectrum into that of the infrared. Equipped with deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 UVIS and IR observations, we present a weak-lensing characterization of SpARCS1049+56. As few IR weak-lensing studies have been performed, we discuss the details of PSF modeling and galaxy shape measurement for an IR weak-lensing procedure and the systematics that come with the territory. It will be critical to understand these systematics in future weak-lensing studies in the IR with the next generation space telescopes such as JWST, Euclid, and WFIRST. Through a careful analysis, the mass distribution of this young galaxy cluster is mapped and the convergence peak is detected at a 3.3 sigma level. The weak-lensing mass of the cluster is estimated to be $3.5pm1.2times10^{14} text{M}_odot$ and is consistent with the mass derived from a mass-richness scaling relation. This mass is extreme for a cluster at such a high redshift and suggests that SpARCS1049+56 is rare in the standard $Lambda$CDM universe.
We present a detailed high-resolution weak-lensing (WL) study of SPT-CL J2106-5844 at z=1.132, claimed to be the most massive system discovered at z > 1 in the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SPT-SZ) survey. Based on the deep imaging data fro
m the Advanced Camera for Surveys and Wide Field Camera 3 on-board the Hubble Space Telescope, we find that the cluster mass distribution is asymmetric, composed of a main clump and a subclump ~640 kpc west thereof. The central clump is further resolved into two smaller northwestern and southeastern substructures separated by ~150 kpc. We show that this rather complex mass distribution is more consistent with the cluster galaxy distribution than a unimodal distribution as previously presented. The northwestern substructure coincides with the BCG and X-ray peak while the southeastern one agrees with the location of the number density peak. These morphological features and the comparison with the X-ray emission suggest that the cluster might be a merging system. We estimate the virial mass of the cluster to be $M_{200c} = (10.4^{+3.3}_{-3.0}pm1.0)~times~10^{14}~M_{odot}$, where the second error bar is the systematic uncertainty. Our result confirms that the cluster SPT-CL J2106-5844 is indeed the most massive cluster at z>1 known to date. We demonstrate the robustness of this mass estimate by performing a number of tests with different assumptions on the centroids, mass-concentration relations, and sample variance.
A115 is a merging galaxy cluster at $zsim0.2$ with a number of remarkable features including a giant ($sim2.5$ Mpc) radio relic, two asymmetric X-ray peaks with trailing tails, and a peculiar line-of-sight velocity structure. We present a multi-wavel
ength study of A115 using optical imaging data from Subaru, X-ray data from $Chandra$, and spectroscopic data from the Keck/DEIMOS and MMT/Hectospec instruments. Our weak-lensing analysis shows that the cluster is comprised of two subclusters whose mass centroids are in excellent agreement with the two BCG positions ($lesssim10$). By modeling A115 with a superposition of two Navarro-Frenk-White halos, we determine the masses of the northern and southern subclusters to be $M_{200}=1.58_{-0.49}^{+0.56}times 10^{14} text{M}_{odot}$ and $3.15_{-0.71}^{+0.79}times 10^{14} text{M}_{odot}$, respectively. Combining the two halos, we estimate the total cluster mass to be $M_{200}=6.41_{-1.04}^{+1.08}times10^{14} text{M}_{odot}$ at $R_{200}=1.67_{-0.09}^{+0.10}$ Mpc. These weak-lensing masses are significantly (a factor of 3-10) lower than what is implied by the X-ray and optical spectroscopic data. We attribute the difference to the gravitational and hydrodynamic disruption caused by the collision between the two subclusters.
We present a weak-lensing study of SPT-CLJ2040-4451 and IDCSJ1426+3508 at z=1.48 and 1.75, respectively. The two clusters were observed in our See Change program, a HST survey of 12 massive high-redshift clusters aimed at high-z supernova measurement
s and weak-lensing estimation of accurate cluster masses. We detect weak but significant galaxy shape distortions using IR images from the WFC3, which has not yet been used for weak-lensing studies. Both clusters appear to possess relaxed morphology in projected mass distribution, and their mass centroids agree nicely with those defined by both the galaxy luminosity and X-ray emission. Using an NFW profile, for which we assume that the mass is tightly correlated with the concentration parameter, we determine the masses of SPT-CL J2040-4451 and IDCS J1426+3508 to be M_{200}=8.6_{-1.4}^{+1.7}x10^14 M_sun and 2.2_{-0.7}^{+1.1}x10^14 M_sun, respectively. The weak-lensing mass of SPT-CLJ2040-4451 shows that the cluster is clearly a rare object. Adopting the central value, the expected abundance of such a massive cluster at z>1.48 is only ~0.07 in the parent 2500 sq. deg. survey. However, it is yet premature to claim that the presence of this cluster creates a serious tension with the current LCDM paradigm unless that tension will remain in future studies after marginalizing over many sources of uncertainties such as the accuracy of the mass function and the mass-concentration relation at the high mass end. The mass of IDCSJ1426+3508 is in excellent agreement with our previous ACS-based weak-lensing result while the much higher source density from our WFC3 imaging data makes the current statistical uncertainty ~40% smaller.
