Monday, August 31, 2020

Day 1751

Monday.



2008.12312
On the primordial information available to galaxy redshift surveys
McQuinn

We investigate the amount of primordial information that can be reconstructed from spectroscopic galaxy surveys, as well as what sets the noise in reconstruction at low wavenumbers, by studying a simplified universe in which galaxies are the Zeldovich displaced Lagrangian peaks in the linear density field. For some of this study, we further take an intuitive linearized limit in which reconstruction is a convex problem but where the solution is also a solution to the full nonlinear problem, a limit that bounds the effectiveness of reconstruction. The linearized reconstruction results in similar cross correlation coefficients to those of reconstruction algorithms that have been applied to N-body simulations (as well as of our nonlinear algorithms), which suggests that existing reconstruction algorithms are extracting most of the accessible information. Our approach helps explain why reconstruction algorithms accurately reproduce the initial conditions up to some characteristic wavenumber, at which point there is a quick transition to almost no correlation. This transition is set by the number of constraints on reconstruction (the number of galaxies in the survey) and not by where shot noise surpasses the clustering signal, as is traditionally thought. We further show that on linear scales a mode can be reconstructed with precision well below the shot noise expectation if galaxy Lagrangian displacements can be sufficiently constrained. We provide idealized examples of nonlinear reconstruction where shot noise can be outperformed.

Saturday, August 29, 2020

Day 1750

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.


2008.10663
Joint survey processing of Euclid, Rubin and Roman: Final Report
Chary, et al

The Euclid, Rubin/LSST and Roman (WFIRST) projects will undertake flagship optical/near-infrared surveys in the next decade. By mapping thousands of square degrees of sky and covering the electromagnetic spectrum between 0.3 and 2 microns with sub-arcsec resolution, these projects will detect several tens of billions of sources, enable a wide range of astrophysical investigations by the astronomical community and provide unprecedented constraints on the nature of dark energy and dark matter. The ultimate cosmological, astrophysical and time-domain science yield from these missions will require joint survey processing (JSP) functionality at the pixel level that is outside the scope of the individual survey projects. The JSP effort scoped here serves two high-level objectives: 1) provide precise concordance multi-wavelength images and catalogs over the entire sky area where these surveys overlap, which accounts for source confusion and mismatched isophotes, and 2) provide a science platform to analyze concordance images and catalogs to enable a wide range of astrophysical science goals to be formulated and addressed by the research community. For the cost of about 200WY, JSP will allow the U.S. (and international) astronomical community to manipulate the flagship data sets and undertake innovative science investigations ranging from solar system object characterization, exoplanet detections, nearby galaxy rotation rates and dark matter properties, to epoch of reionization studies. It will also allow for the ultimate constraints on cosmological parameters and the nature of dark energy, with far smaller uncertainties and a better handle on systematics than by any one survey alone.


2008.11688
Cosmology with Rayleigh scattering of the cosmic microwave background
Beringue, et al

The cosmic microwave background (CMB) has been a treasure trove for cosmology. Over the next decade, current and planned CMB experiments are expected to exhaust nearly all primary CMB information. To further constrain cosmological models, there is a great benefit to measuring signals beyond the primary modes. Rayleigh scattering of the CMB is one source of additional cosmological information. It is caused by the additional scattering of CMB photons by neutral species formed during recombination and exhibits a strong and unique frequency scaling ($\propto \nu^4$). We will show that with sufficient sensitivity across frequency channels, the Rayleigh scattering signal should not only be detectable but can significantly improve constraining power for cosmological parameters, with limited or no additional modifications to planned experiments. We will provide heuristic explanations for why certain cosmological parameters benefit from measurement of the Rayleigh scattering signal, and confirm these intuitions using the Fisher formalism. In particular, observation of Rayleigh scattering allows significant improvements on measurements of $N_{\rm eff}$ and $\sum m_\nu$.


2008.12271
Benfords law in the Gaia universe
de Jong, et al

Benfords law states that for scale- and base-invariant data sets covering a wide dynamic range, the distribution of the first significant digit is biased towards low values. This has been shown to be true for wildly different datasets, including financial, geographical, and atomic data. In astronomy, earlier work showed that Benfords law also holds for distances estimated as the inverse of parallaxes from the ESA Hipparcos mission. We investigate whether Benfords law still holds for the 1.3 billion parallaxes contained in the second data release of Gaia (Gaia DR2). In contrast to previous work, we also include negative parallaxes. We examine whether distance estimates computed using a Bayesian approach instead of parallax inversion still follow Benfords law. Lastly, we investigate the use of Benfords law as a validation tool for the zero-point of the Gaia parallaxes.

Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Day 1749

Monday.  Tuesday.


2008.10337
Evolution of the Earth's polar outflow from id-Archean to present
Kislyakova, et al

The development of habitable conditions on Earth is tightly connected to the evolution of its atmosphere which is strongly influenced by atmospheric escape. We investigate the evolution of the polar ion outflow from the open field line bundle which is the dominant escape mechanism for the modern Earth. We perform Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) simulations and estimate the upper limits on escape rates from the Earth's open field line bundle starting from three gigayears ago (Ga) to present assuming the present-day composition of the atmosphere. We perform two additional simulations with lower mixing ratios of oxygen of 1% and 15% to account for the conditions shortly after the Great Oxydation Event (GOE). We estimate the maximum loss rates due to polar outflow three gigayears ago of $3.3 \times10^{27}$ s$^{-1}$ and $2.4 \times 10^{27}$ s$^{-1}$ for oxygen and nitrogen, respectively. The total integrated mass loss equals to 39% and 10% of the modern atmosphere's mass, for oxygen and nitrogen, respectively. According to our results, the main factors that governed the polar outflow in the considered time period are the evolution of the XUV radiation of the Sun and the atmosphere's composition. The evolution of the Earth's magnetic field plays a less important role. We conclude that although the atmosphere with the present-day composition can survive the escape due to polar outflow, a higher level of CO$_2$ between 3.0 and 2.0~Ga is likely necessary to reduce the escape.


2008.10359
SkyMapper Southern Survey: Second Data Release (DR2)
Onken, et al

We present the second data release (DR2) of the SkyMapper Southern Survey, a hemispheric survey carried out with the SkyMapper Telescope at Siding Spring Observatory in Australia, using six optical filters: $u,v,g,r,i,z$. DR2 is the first release to go beyond the $\sim$18mag (10${\sigma}$) limit of the Shallow Survey released in DR1, and includes portions of the sky at full survey depth that reach >21mag in $g$ and $r$ filters. The DR2 photometry has a precision as measured by internal reproducibility of 1% in $u$ and $v$, and 0.7% in $griz$. More than 21 000 deg$^2$ have data in some filters (at either Shallow or Main Survey depth) and over 7 000 deg$^2$ have deep Main Survey coverage in all six filters. Finally, about 18 000 deg$^2$ have Main Survey data in $i$ and $z$ filters, albeit not yet at full depth. The release contains over 120 000 images, as well as catalogues with over 500 million unique astrophysical objects and nearly 5 billion individual detections. It also contains cross-matches with a range of external catalogues such as Gaia DR2, Pan-STARRS1 DR1, GALEX GUVcat, 2MASS, and AllWISE, as well as spectroscopic surveys such as 2MRS, GALAH, 6dFGS, and 2dFLenS.


2008.10393
HOLISMOKES -- III. Achromatic phase of strongly lensed Type Ia Supernovae
Huber, Suyu, et al

To use strongly lensed Type Ia supernovae (LSNe Ia) for cosmology, a time-delay measurement between the multiple supernova (SN) images is necessary. The sharp rise and decline of SN Ia light curves make them promising for measuring time delays, but microlensing can distort these light curves and therefore add large uncertainties to the measurements. An alternative approach is to use color curves where uncertainties due to microlensing are significantly reduced for a certain period of time known as the achromatic phase. In this work, we investigate in detail the achromatic phase, testing four different SN Ia models with various microlensing configurations. We find on average an achromatic phase of around three rest-frame weeks or longer for most color curves but the spread in the duration of the achromatic phase (due to different microlensing maps and filter combinations) is quite large and an achromatic phase of just a few days is also possible. Furthermore, the achromatic phase is longer for smoother microlensing maps, lower macro-magnifications and larger mean Einstein radii of microlenses. From our investigations, we do not find a strong dependency on the model or on asymmetries in the SN ejecta. Further, we find that three independent LSST color curves exhibit features such as extreme points or turning points within the achromatic phase, which make them promising for time-delay measurements. These curves contain combinations of rest-frame bands $u$, $g$, $r$, and $i$ and to observe them for typical LSN Ia redshifts, it would be ideal to cover (observer-frame) filters $r$, $i$, $z$, $y$, $J$, and $H$.


2008.10445
A physical interpretation of Milky Way galaxy dymamcics from precision astrometrics
La Fortune

The dynamical and virial mass of the Milky Way galaxy is estimated using latest high precision stellar halo and dwarf galaxy satellite kinematics. The new data suggest the Galaxy is a highly compact, classically thermalized object. Kinematics exhibit significant velocity-spatial substructure, distinctive dynamic partitions, and strong Keplerian signatures that run counter to popular notions of featureless and massively extended dark matter halos. The effective local escape velocity profile of the Galaxy is quantified in terms of distribution and kinematics to reveal the physics responsible for the Mass Discrepancy-Acceleration (MDAR) and Radial Acceleration (RAR) relations.


Saturday, August 22, 2020

Day 1748

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.


2008.08671
Stable partial ice cover possible for any obliquity: effects of obliquity, albedo, and heat transport on  ice cover dynamics
Landgren, Nadeau

The Snowball state refers to when a planet is completely or almost completely covered in ice. The Earth may have passed through several Snowball events in its history which may have been crucial for increasing complexity of life. As we turn our focus to habitable planets outside of our solar system, the question then arises, what planetary characteristics permit a Snowball state and how do they impact the severity of this state? One factor determining planetary ice cover is the distribution of mean annual incoming solar radiation, which in turn depends on the planetary obliquity. In this study, we use an analytical energy balance model with explicit dependence on obliquity to study the probability of a catastrophic transition from partial ice cover to a stable Snowball State. We show that transitions to the Snowball state is more severe but less likely for higher values of the albedo contrast and energy transport across latitudes and that stable partial ice cover is possible at any obliquity. Additionally, this work is general enough to apply to any rapidly rotating planet and could be used to study the likelihood of Snowball transitions on planets within the habitable region of other stars.


2008.08709
Potential for liquid water biochemistry deep under the surfaces of the Moon, Mars and beyond
Lingam, Loeb

We investigate the prospects for the past or current existence of habitable conditions deep underneath the surfaces of the Moon and Mars as well as generic bound and free-floating extrasolar rocky objects. We construct a simple model that takes into account the thermal limits of life as well as the size, surface temperature, and relative radionuclide abundance of a given object and yields the spatial extent of the subsurface habitable region. We also investigate the constraint imposed by pressure on habitability, and show that it is unlikely to rule out the prospects for life altogether. We estimate the maximum biomass that might be sustainable in deep subsurface environments as a function of the aforementioned parameters from an energetic perspective. We find that it might be a few percent that of Earth's subsurface biosphere, and three orders of magnitude smaller than Earth's global biomass, under ideal circumstances. We conclude with a brief exposition of the prevalence of rocky objects with deep biospheres and methods for detecting signatures of biological activity through forthcoming missions to visit the Moon and Mars.

Monday, August 17, 2020

Day 1747

Monday.


2008.06055
HST Proper motions of NGC 147 and NGC 185: orbital histories and test of dynamically coherent Andromeda satellite plane
Sohn, et al

We present the first proper motion (PM) measurements for the dwarf elliptical galaxies NGC 147 and NGC 185, two satellite galaxies of M31, using multi-epoch HST imaging data with time baselines of $\sim 8$ years. For each galaxy, we take an error-weighted average of measurements from HST ACS/WFC and WFC3/UVIS to determine the PMs. Our final results for the PMs are $(\mu_\mathrm{W}, \mu_\mathrm{N})_\mathrm{N147} = (-0.0232, 0.0378) \pm (0.0143, 0.0146)\,\mathrm{mas}\,\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$ for NGC 147, and $(\mu_\mathrm{W}, \mu_\mathrm{N})_\mathrm{N185} = (-0.0242, 0.0058) \pm (0.0141, 0.0147)\,\mathrm{mas}\,\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$ for NGC 185. The 2-dimensional direction of motion for NGC 147 about M31 is found to be aligned with its tidal tails. The 3-d positions and velocities of both galaxies are transformed into a common M31-centric coordinate system to study the detailed orbital histories of the combined M31+NGC 147+NGC 185 system via numerical orbit integration. We find that NGC 147 (NGC 185) had its closest passage to M31 0.3-0.5~Gyr ($\gtrsim 1.6$~Gyr) within the past 6 Gyr at distances of $\sim 70$ kpc (70-260 kpc). The pericentric times of NGC 147/NGC 185 correlate qualitatively well with the presence/absence of tidal tails seen around the galaxies. Our PMs show that the orbital poles of NGC 147, and also NGC 185 albeit to a lesser degree, agree within the uncertainties with the normal of the Great Plane of Andromeda (GPoA). These are the first measurements of the 3-d angular momentum vector of any satellite identified as original GPoA members. Our results strengthen the hypothesis that the GPoA may be a dynamically coherent entity. We revisit previous claims that NGC 147 and NGC 185 are binary galaxies and conclude that it is very unlikely the two galaxies were ever gravitationally bound to each other.


2008.06157
TDCOSMO V: stratigies for precise and accurate measurements of the Hubble constant with strong lensing
Birrer, Treu

Strong lensing time delays can measure the Hubble constant H$_0$ independent of any other probe. Assuming commonly used forms for the radial mass density profile of the lenses, a 2\% precision has been achieved with 7 Time-Delay Cosmography (TDCOSMO) lenses, in tension with the H$_0$ from the cosmic microwave background. However, without assumptions on the radial mass density profile -- and relying exclusively on stellar kinematics to break the mass-sheet degeneracy -- the precision drops to 8\% with the current data of the 7 TDCOSMO lenses, insufficient to resolve the H$_0$ tension. With the addition of external information from 33 Sloan Lens ACS (SLACS) lenses, the precision improves to 5\%, {\it if} the deflectors of TDCOSMO and SLACS lenses are drawn from the same population. We investigate the prospects to improve the precision of time-delay cosmography without relying on mass profile assumptions to break the mass sheet degeneracy. Our forecasts are based on the hierarchical framework introduced by Birrer et al. (2020). With existing samples and technology, 3.3\% precision on H$_0$ can be reached by adding spatially resolved kinematics of the 7 TDCOSMO lenses. The precision improves to 2.5\% with the further addition of kinematics for 50 non-time-delay lenses from SLACS and the Strong Lensing Legacy Survey (SL2S). Expanding the samples to 40 time delay and 200 non-time delay lenses will improve the precision to 1.5\% and 1.2\%, respectively. Time-delay cosmography can reach sufficient precision to resolve the Hubble tension at 3-5$\sigma$, without assumptions on the radial mass profile of lens galaxies. By obtaining this precision with and without external datasets, we will test the consistency of the samples and enable further improvements based on even larger future samples of time delay and non-time-delay lenses (e.g. from the Rubin, Euclid, and Roman Observatories).

Saturday, August 15, 2020

Day 1746

Thursday, Friday.


2008.04967
Accuracy of magnitude in pre-telescopic star catalogues
Protte, Hoffmann

Historical star magnitudes from catalogues by Ptolemy (137 AD), as-Sufi (964) and Tycho Brahe (1602/27) are converted to the Johnson V-mag scale and compared to modern day values from the HIPPARCOS catalogue. The deviations (or "errors") are tested for dependencies on three different observational influences. The relation between historical and modern magnitudes is found to be linear in all three catalogues as it had previously been shown for the Almagest data by Hearnshaw (1999). A slight dependency on the colour index (B-V) is shown throughout the data sets and as-Sufi's as well as Brahe's data also give fainter values for stars of lower culmination height (indicating extinction). In all three catalogues, a star's estimated magnitude is influenced by the brightness of its immediate surroundings. After correction for the three effects, the remaining variance within the magnitude errors can be considered as approximate accuracy of the pre-telescopic magnitude estimates. The final converted and corrected magnitudes are available via the Vizier catalogue access tool (Ochsenbein, Bauer, & Marcout, 2000).

Thursday, August 13, 2020

Day 1745

Wednesday.


2008.04315
High-redshift radio galaxies: a potential new source of 21-cm fluctuations
Reis, et al

Radio sources are expected to have formed at high redshifts, producing an excess radiation background above the cosmic microwave background (CMB) at low frequencies. Their effect on the redshifted 21-cm signal of neutral hydrogen is usually neglected, as it is assumed that the associated background is small. Recently, an excess radio background above the level of the CMB has been proposed as one of the possible explanations for the unusually strong 21-cm signal from redshift $z\sim 17$ reported by the EDGES collaboration. As a result, the implications of a smooth and extremely strong excess radio background on both the sky-averaged (global) 21-cm signal and its fluctuations have been considered. Here we take into account the inhomogeneity of the radio background created by a population of high-redshift galaxies, and show that it adds a new type of 21-cm fluctuations to the well-known contributions of density, velocity, Ly-${\alpha}$ coupling, heating and reionization. We find that a population of high-redshift galaxies even with a moderately-enhanced radio efficiency (unrelated to the EDGES result) can have a significant effect on the 21-cm power spectrum and global signal in models with weak X-ray heating. For models that can explain the EDGES data, we conduct a large parameter survey to explore their signatures. We show that in such models the 21-cm power spectrum at $z\sim 17$ is enhanced by up to two orders of magnitude compared to the CMB-only standard case, and the shape and time evolution of the power spectrum is significantly modified by the radio fluctuations. These fluctuations are within reach of upcoming radio interferometers. We also find that these models can be significantly constrained by current and future observations of radio sources.

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

Day 1744


Tuesday.


2008.03446
Using Gaia DR2 to solve differential color refraction and charge transfer efficiency issues
Lin, et al

The Gaia DR2 catalog released in 2018 gives information about more than one billion stars, including their extremely precise positions that are not affected by the atmosphere, as well as the magnitudes in the G, RP, and BP passbands. This information provides great potential for the improvement of the ground-based astrometry. Based on Gaia DR2, we present a convenient method to calibrate the differential color refraction (DCR). This method only requires observations with dozens of stars taken through a selected filter. Applying this method to the reduction of observations captured through different filters by the 1-m and 2.4-m telescopes at Yunnan Observatory, the results show that the mean of the residuals between observed and computed positions (O-C) after DCR correction is significantly reduced. For our observations taken through an N (null) filter, the median of the mean (O-C) for well-exposed stars (about 15 G-mag) decreases from 19 mas to 3 mas, thus achieving better accuracy, i.e. mean (O-C). Another issue correlated is a systematic error caused by the poor charge transfer efficiency (CTE) when a CCD frame is read out. This systematic error is significant for some of the observations captured by the 1-m telescope at Yunnan Observatory. Using a sigmoidal function to fit and correct the mean (O-C), a systematic error up to 30 mas can be eliminated.


2008.03833
Deep generative models for galaxy image simulations
Lanusse, Mandelbaum, et al

Image simulations are essential tools for preparing and validating the analysis of current and future wide-field optical surveys. However, the galaxy models used as the basis for these simulations are typically limited to simple parametric light profiles, or use a fairly limited amount of available space-based data. In this work, we propose a methodology based on Deep Generative Models to create complex models of galaxy morphologies that may meet the image simulation needs of upcoming surveys. We address the technical challenges associated with learning this morphology model from noisy and PSF-convolved images by building a hybrid Deep Learning/physical Bayesian hierarchical model for observed images, explicitly accounting for the Point Spread Function and noise properties. The generative model is further made conditional on physical galaxy parameters, to allow for sampling new light profiles from specific galaxy populations. We demonstrate our ability to train and sample from such a model on galaxy postage stamps from the HST/ACS COSMOS survey, and validate the quality of the model using a range of second- and higher-order morphology statistics. Using this set of statistics, we demonstrate significantly more realistic morphologies using these deep generative models compared to conventional parametric models. To help make these generative models practical tools for the community, we introduce GalSim-Hub, a community-driven repository of generative models, and a framework for incorporating generative models within the GalSim image simulation software.

Monday, August 10, 2020

Day 1743

Monday.


2008.02808
The Supersonic Project: to cool or not to cool supersonically induced gas objects (SIGOs)?
Chiou, et al

Supersonically Induced Gas Objects (SIGOs) primarily form in the early Universe, outside of dark matter halos due to the presence of a relative stream velocity between baryons and dark matter. These structures may be the progenitors of globular clusters. Since SIGOs are made out of pristine gas, we investigate the effect of atomic cooling on their properties. We run a set of four simulations by using the moving-mesh code {\sc arepo}, with and without baryon-dark matter relative velocity and with and without the effects of atomic cooling. We show that SIGO's density, temperature, and prolateness are determined by gravitational interactions rather than cooling. The cold gas fraction in SIGOs is much higher than that of dark matter halos. Specifically, we show that the SIGO's characteristic low temperature and extreme high gas density forges a nurturing site for the earliest star formation sites.


2008.02960
A semi-analytic model of pairwise velocity distribution between dark matter haloes
Shirasaki, Huff, Markovic, Rhodes

We study the probability distribution function (PDF) of relative velocity between two different dark matter halos (i.e. pairwise velocity) with a set of high-resolution cosmological $N$-body simulations. We investigate the pairwise velocity PDFs over a wide range of halo masses of $10^{12.5-15}\, h^{-1}M_{\odot}$ and redshifts of $0<z<1$. At a given set of masses, redshift and the separation length between two halos, our model requires three parameters to set the pairwise velocity PDF, whereas previous non-Gaussian models in the literature assume four or more free parameters. At the length scales of $r=5-40\, [h^{-1}\, \mathrm{Mpc}]$, our model predicts the mean and dispersion of the pairwise velocity for dark matter halos with their masses of $10^{12.5-13.5} \, [h^{-1}M_{\odot}]$ at $0.3 < z < 1$ with a 5%-level precision, while the model precision reaches a 20% level (mostly a 10% level) for other masses and redshifts explored in the simulations. We demonstrate that our model of the pairwise velocity PDF provides an accurate mapping of the two-point clustering of massive-galaxy-sized halos at the scales of $O(10)\, h^{-1}\mathrm{Mpc}$ between redshift and real space for a given real-space correlation function. For a mass-limited halo sample with their masses greater than $10^{13.5}\, h^{-1}M_{\odot}$ at $z=0.55$, our model can explain the monopole and quadropole moments of the redshift-space two-point correlations with a precision better than 5% at the scales of $5-40$ and $10-30\, h^{-1}\mathrm{Mpc}$, respectively. Our model of the pairwise velocity PDF will give a detailed explanation of statistics of massive galaxies at the intermediate scales in redshift surveys, including the non-linear redshift-space distortion effect in two-point correlation functions and the measurements of the kinematic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect.


2008.03099
Feedback between Sgr A and B: AGN-Sstarburst connection in the Galactic Centre
Sofue

Propagation of fast-mode magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) compression waves is traced in the Galactic Centre. MHD waves produced by the active Galactic nucleus (Sgr A) focus on the molecular clouds such as Sgr B in the central molecular zone, which will trigger star formation, or possibly starburst. MHD waves newly excited by the starburst propagate backward, and focus on the nucleus (Sgr A), where implosive waves compress the nuclear gas to promote fueling the nucleus and may trigger nucleus activity. Echoing focusing of MHD waves between Sgr A (active galactic nucleus: AGN) and Sgr B (starburst) trigger each other at high efficiency by minimal energy requirement. It also solves the problem of angular momentum for AGN fueling, as the focusing waves do not require global gas flow.


2008.03291
Nuclear and dark matter heating in massive white dwarf stars
Horowitz

Recently, Cheng et al. identified a number of massive white dwarfs (WD) that appear to have an additional heat source providing a luminosity near $\approx 10^{-3}L_\odot$ for multiple Gyr. In this paper we explore heating from electron capture and pycnonuclear reactions. We also explore heating from dark matter annihilation. WD stars appear to be too small to capture enough dark matter for this to be important. Finally, if dark matter condenses to very high densities inside a WD this could ignite nuclear reactions. We calculate the enhanced central density of a WD in the gravitational potential of a very dense dark matter core. While this might start a supernova, it seems unlikely to provide modest heating for a long time. We conclude that electron capture, pycnonuclear, and dark matter reactions are unlikely to provide significant heating in the massive WD that Cheng considers.

Friday, August 7, 2020

Day 1742

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.


2008.01080
Synergies between ground-based and space-based observations in the solar system and beyond
Kofman, et al

Telescope and detector developments continuously enable deeper and more detailed studies of astronomical objects. Larger collecting areas, improvement in dispersion and detector techniques, and higher sensitivities allow detection of more molecules in a single observation, at lower abundances, resulting in better constraints of the targets physical and chemical conditions. Improvements on current telescopes, and not to mention future observatories, both in space and on the ground, will continue this trend, ever improving our understanding of the Universe. Planetary exploration missions carry instrumentation to unexplored areas, and reveal details impossible to observe from the Earth by performing in-situ measurements. Space based observatories allow observations of object at wavelength ranges absorbed by the Earths atmosphere. The depth of understanding from all of these studies can be greatly enhanced by combining observations: ground-based and space-based, low-resolution and high-resolution, local and global-scale, similar observations over a broader or different spectra range, or by providing temporal information through follow-ups. Combined observations provide context and a broader scope of the studied object, and in this white paper, we outline a number of studies where observations are synergistically applied to increase the scientific value of both datasets. Examples include atmospheric studies of Venus, Mars, Titan, comets, Jupiter, as well as more specific cases describing synergistic studies in the Juno mission, and ground-based radar studies for near Earth objects. The examples aim to serve as inspiration for future synergistic observations, and recommendations are made based on the lessons learned from these examples.


2008.01082
Fundamental Physics using the temporal gravitational wave background
Mukhurjee, Silk

We propose a novel probe of fundamental physics by the exploitation of the temporal correlations between the multi-frequency electromagnetic (EM) signal and the stochastic gravitational wave background (SGWB) originating from coalescing binaries. This method will be useful for detection of EM counterparts associated with SGWB sources. Measurement of the inevitable time-domain correlations between different frequencies of gravitational and EM waves will test several aspects of fundamental physics and theory of gravity, and explore a new pathway for studying the universal nature of binary compact objects up to high redshifts. Exploiting the time delay between concomitant emission of the gravitational wave and EM signals enables inference of the redshifts of the contributing sources by studying the time delay dilation due to cosmological expansion, if the time-lag between the emission of gravitational wave signal and EM signal acts like a standard clock. Exploration of the time-domain correlations between multi-messenger probes will bring new research directions to the understanding of transient sources, in a way that is accessible with current and future gravitational wave observatories.


2008.01107
Characterizing galaxy clusters by their gravitational potential: systematic of cluster potential reconstruction
Tchernin, et al

Context. Biases in mass measurements of galaxy clusters are one of the major limiting systematics in constraining cosmology with clusters. Aims. We aim to demonstrate that the systematics associated with cluster gravitational potentials are smaller than the hydrostatic mass bias and that cluster potentials could therefore be a good alternative to cluster masses in cosmological studies. Methods. Using cosmological simulations of galaxy clusters, we compute the biases in the hydrostatic mass (HE mass) and those in the gravitational potential, reconstructed from measurements at X-ray and millimeter wavelengths. In particular, we investigate the effects of the presence of substructures and of non-thermal pressure support on both the HE mass and the reconstructed potential. Results. We find that the bias in the reconstructed potential (6%) is less than that of the HE mass (13%), and that the scatter in the reconstructed potential decreases by about 35% with respect to that in the HE mass. Conclusions. This study shows that characterizing galaxy clusters by their gravitational potential is a promising alternative to using cluster masses in cluster cosmology.

Tuesday, August 4, 2020

Day 1741

Tuesday.


2008.00022
Milky Way satellite census. III.  Constraints on dark matter properties from observations of Milky Way satellite galaxies
Nadler, et al

We perform a comprehensive study of Milky Way (MW) satellite galaxies to constrain the fundamental properties of dark matter (DM). This analysis fully incorporates inhomogeneities in the spatial distribution and detectability of MW satellites, and marginalizes over uncertainties in the mapping between galaxies and DM halos, the properties of the MW system, and the disruption of subhalos by the MW disk. Our results are consistent with the cold, collisionless DM paradigm and yield the strongest cosmological constraints to date on particle models of warm, interacting, and fuzzy dark matter. At $95\%$ confidence, we report limits on ($\mathit{i}$) the mass of thermal relic warm DM, $m_{\rm WDM} > 6.5\ \mathrm{keV}$ (free-streaming length, $\lambda_{\rm{fs}} \lesssim 10\,h^{-1}\ \mathrm{kpc}$), ($\mathit{ii}$) the velocity-independent DM$-$proton scattering cross section, $\sigma_{0} < 8.8\times 10^{-29}\ \mathrm{cm}^{2}$ for a $100\ \mathrm{MeV}$ DM particle mass (DM$-$proton coupling, $c_p \lesssim (0.3\ \mathrm{GeV})^{-2}$), and ($\mathit{iii}$) the mass of fuzzy DM, $m_{\phi}> 2.9 \times 10^{-21}\ \mathrm{eV}$ (de Broglie wavelength, $\lambda_{\rm{dB}} \lesssim 0.5\ \mathrm{kpc}$). These constraints are complementary to other observational and laboratory constraints on DM properties.

Monday, August 3, 2020

Day 1740

Monday.


2007.15657
Constraining the gravitational lensing of $z\gtrsim6$ quasars from their proximity zones
Davies, et al

Since their discovery twenty years ago, the observed luminosity function of $z\gtrsim6$ quasars has been suspected to be biased by gravitational lensing. Apart from the recent discovery of UHS J0439+1634 at $z\approx6.52$, no other strongly lensed $z\gtrsim6$ quasar has been conclusively identified. The hyperluminous $z\approx6.33$ quasar SDSS J0100+2802, believed to host a supermassive black hole of $\sim10^{10} M_\odot$, has recently been claimed to be lensed by a factor of $\sim450$, which would negate both its extreme luminosity and black hole mass. However, its Ly$\alpha$-transparent proximity zone is the largest known at $z>6$, suggesting an intrinsically extreme ionizing luminosity. Here we show that the lensing hypothesis of $z\gtrsim6$ quasars can be quantitatively constrained by their proximity zones. We first show that our proximity zone analysis can recover the strongly lensed nature of UHS J0439+1634, with an estimated magnification $\mu=28.0^{+18.4}_{-11.7}(^{+44.9}_{-18.3})$ at 68% (95%) credibility that is consistent with previously published lensing models. We then show that the large proximity zone of SDSS J0100+2802 rules out lensing magnifications of $\mu>4.9$ at 95% probability, and conclusively rule out the proposed $\mu>100$ scenario. Future proximity zone analyses of existing $z\gtrsim6$ quasar samples have the potential to identify promising strongly lensed candidates, constrain the distribution of $z\gtrsim6$ quasar lensing, and improve our knowledge of the shape of the intrinsic quasar luminosity function.


2007.16153
Euclid: forecast constraints on the cosmic distance duality relation with complementary external probes
Martinelli, et al

In metric theories of gravity with photon number conservation, the luminosity and angular diameter distances are related via the Etherington relation, also known as the distance-duality relation (DDR). A violation of this relation would rule out the standard cosmological paradigm and point at the presence of new physics. We quantify the ability of Euclid, in combination with contemporary surveys, to improve the current constraints on deviations from the DDR in the redshift range $0<z<1.6$. We start by an analysis of the latest available data, improving previously reported constraints by a factor of 2.5. We then present a detailed analysis of simulated Euclid and external data products, using both standard parametric methods (relying on phenomenological descriptions of possible DDR violations) and a machine learning reconstruction using Genetic Algorithms. We find that for parametric methods Euclid can (in combination with external probes) improve current constraints by approximately a factor of six, while for non-parametric methods Euclid can improve current constraints by a factor of three. Our results highlight the importance of surveys like Euclid in accurately testing the pillars of the current cosmological paradigm and constraining physics beyond the standard cosmological model.


2007.16166
Baryonic feedback measurement fro mKV450 cosmic shear analysis
Yoon, Jee

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. In this letter, with cosmic shear alone we report the first measurement of the baryonic feedback parameter with the full constraints on its lower and upper limits. 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 ~1.2$\sigma$ 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 ~$6$% 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 ~$2.2~\sigma$ (~$3.1~\sigma$) level.

Sunday, August 2, 2020

Day 1739

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.


2007.12178
How to obtain the redshift distribution from probabilistic redshift estimates
Malz, Hogg

A trustworthy estimate of the redshift distribution $n(z)$ is crucial for using weak gravitational lensing and large-scale structure of galaxy catalogs to study cosmology. Spectroscopic redshifts for the dim and numerous galaxies of next-generation weak-lensing surveys are expected to be unavailable, making photometric redshift (photo-$z$) probability density functions (PDFs) the next-best alternative for comprehensively encapsulating the nontrivial systematics affecting photo-$z$ point estimation. The established stacked estimator of $n(z)$ avoids reducing photo-$z$ PDFs to point estimates but yields a systematically biased estimate of $n(z)$ that worsens with decreasing signal-to-noise, the very regime where photo-$z$ PDFs are most necessary. We introduce Cosmological Hierarchical Inference with Probabilistic Photometric Redshifts (CHIPPR), a statistically rigorous probabilistic graphical model of redshift-dependent photometry, which correctly propagates the redshift uncertainty information beyond the best-fit estimator of $n(z)$ produced by traditional procedures and is provably the only self-consistent way to recover $n(z)$ from photo-$z$ PDFs. We present the $\texttt{chippr}$ prototype code, noting that the mathematically justifiable approach incurs computational expense. The CHIPPR approach is applicable to any one-point statistic of any random variable, provided the prior probability density used to produce the posteriors is explicitly known; if the prior is implicit, as may be the case for popular photo-$z$ techniques, then the resulting posterior PDFs cannot be used for scientific inference. We therefore recommend that the photo-$z$ community focus on developing methodologies that enable the recovery of photo-$z$ likelihoods with support over all redshifts, either directly or via a known prior probability density.


2007.12795
Photo-z outlier self-calibration in weak lensing surveys
Schaan, Ferraro, Seljak

Calibrating photometric redshift errors in weak lensing surveys with external data is extremely challenging. We show that both Gaussian and outlier photo-z parameters can be self-calibrated from the data alone. This comes at no cost for the neutrino masses, curvature and dark energy equation of state $w_0$, but with a 65% degradation when both $w_0$ and $w_a$ are varied. We perform a realistic forecast for the Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO) Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) 3x2 analysis, combining cosmic shear, projected galaxy clustering and galaxy - galaxy lensing. We confirm the importance of marginalizing over photo-z outliers. We examine a subset of internal cross-correlations, dubbed "null correlations", which are usually ignored in 3x2 analyses. Despite contributing only $\sim$ 10% of the total signal-to-noise, these null correlations improve the constraints on photo-z parameters by up to an order of magnitude. Using the same galaxy sample as sources and lenses dramatically improves the photo-z uncertainties too. Together, these methods add robustness to any claim of detected new Physics, and reduce the statistical errors on cosmology by 15% and 10% respectively. Finally, including CMB lensing from an experiment like Simons Observatory or CMB-S4 improves the cosmological and photo-z posterior constraints by about 10%, and further improves the robustness to systematics. To give intuition on the Fisher forecasts, we examine in detail several toy models that explain the origin of the photo-z self-calibration. Our Fisher code LaSSI (Large-Scale Structure Information), which includes the effect of Gaussian and outlier photo-z, shear multiplicative bias, linear galaxy bias, and extensions to $\Lambda$CDM, is publicly available at https://github.com/EmmanuelSchaan/LaSSI .


2007.12814
Low-cost precursor of an interstellar mission
Heller, et al

The solar photon pressure provides a viable source of thrust for spacecraft in the solar system. Theoretically it could also enable interstellar missions, but an extremely small mass per cross section area is required to overcome the solar gravity. We identify aerographite, a synthetic carbon-based foam with a density of 0.18 kg/m^3 (15,000 times more lightweight than aluminum) as a versatile material for highly efficient propulsion with sunlight. A hollow aerographite sphere with a shell thickness eps_shl = 1 mm could go interstellar upon submission to the solar radiation in interplanetary space. Upon launch at 1 AU from the Sun, an aerographite shell with eps_shl = 0.5 mm arrives at the orbit of Mars in 60 d and at Pluto's orbit in 4.3 yr. Release of an aerographite hollow sphere, whose shell is 1 micrometer thick, at 0.04 AU (the closest approach of the Parker Solar Probe) results in an escape speed of nearly 6900 km/s and 185 yr of travel to the distance of our nearest star, Proxima Centauri. The infrared signature of a meter-sized aerographite sail could be observed with JWST up to 2 AU from the Sun, beyond the orbit of Mars. An aerographite hollow sphere with eps_shl = 100 micrometer and a radius of 1 m (5 m) weighs 230 mg (5.7 g) and has a 2.2 g (55 g) mass margin for interstellar escape. The payload margin is ten times the mass of the spacecraft, whereas the payload on chemical interstellar rockets is typically a thousandth of the weight of the rocket. Simplistic communication would enable studies of the interplanetary medium and a search for the suspected Planet Nine, and would serve as a precursor mission to alpha Centauri. We estimate prototype developments costs of 1 million USD, a price of 1000 USD per sail, and a total of <10 million USD including launch for a piggyback concept with an interplanetary mission.


2007.13989
Local interstellar spectra and solar modulation of cosmic ray electrons and positrons
Zhu, et al

Low energy cosmic rays are modulated by the solar activity when they propagation in the heliosphere, leading to ambiguities in understanding their acceleration at sources and propagation in the Milky Way. By means of the precise measurements of the $e^-$, $e^+$, $e^-+e^+$, and $e^+/(e^-+e^+)$ spectra by AMS-02 near the Earth, as well as the very low energy measurements of the $e^-+e^+$ fluxes by Voyager-1 far away from the Sun, we derive the local interstellar spectra (LIS) of $e^-$ and $e^+$ components individually. Our method is based on a non-parametric description of the LIS of $e^-$ and $e^+$ and a force-field solar modulation model. We then obtain the evolution of the solar modulation parameters based on the derived LIS and the monthly fluxes of cosmic ray $e^-$ and $e^+$ measured by AMS-02. {\bf To better fit the monthly data, additional renormalization factors for $e^-$ and $e^+$ have been multiplied to the modulated fluxes.} We find that the inferred solar modulation parameters of positrons are in good agreement with that of cosmic ray nuclei, and the time evolutions of the solar modulation parameters of electrons and positrons differ after the reversal of the heliosphere magnetic field polarity, which shows clearly the charge-sign dependent modulation effect.


2007.14402
Very high redshift quasars and the rapid emergence of super-massive black holes
Kroupa, et al

The observation of quasars at very high redshift such as Poniuaena is a challenge for models of super-massive black hole (SMBH) formation. This work presents a study of SMBH formation via known physical processes in star-burst clusters formed at the onset of the formation of their hosting galaxy. While at the early stages hyper-massive star-burst clusters reach the luminosities of quasars, once their massive stars die, the ensuing gas accretion from the still forming host galaxy compresses its stellar black hole (BH) component to a compact state overcoming heating from the BH--BH binaries such that the cluster collapses, forming a massive SMBH-seed within about a hundred Myr. Within this scenario the SMBH--spheroid correlation emerges near-to-exactly. The highest-redshift quasars may thus be hyper-massive star-burst clusters or young ultra-compact dwarf galaxies (UCDs), being the precursors of the SMBHs that form therein within about 200 Myr of the first stars. For spheroid masses <10^9.6 Msun a SMBH cannot form and instead only the accumulated nuclear cluster remains. The number evolution of the quasar phases with redshift is calculated and the possible problem of missing quasars at very high redshift is raised. SMBH-bearing UCDs and the formation of spheroids are discussed critically in view of the high redshift observations. A possible tension is found between the high star-formation rates (SFRs) implied by downsizing and the observed SFRs, which may be alleviated within the IGIMF theory and if the downsizing times are somewhat longer.


2007.14869
Space Project for Astropyhsical and Cosmological Exploration (SPACE), an ESA stand-alone mission and a possible contribution to the Origins Space Telescope
Burgarella, et al

We propose a new mission called Space Project for Astrophysical and Cosmological Exploration (SPACE) as part on the ESA long term planning Voyage 2050 programme. SPACE will study galaxy evolution at the earliest times, with the key goals of charting the formation of the heavy elements, measuring the evolution of the galaxy luminosity function, tracing the build-up of stellar mass in galaxies over cosmic time, and finding the first super-massive black holes (SMBHs) to form. The mission will exploit a unique region of the parameter space, between the narrow ultra-deep surveys with HST and JWST, and shallow wide-field surveys such as Roman Space Telescope and EUCLID, and should yield by far the largest sample of any current or planned mission of very high redshift galaxies at z > 10 which are sufficiently bright for detailed follow-up spectroscopy. Crucially, we propose a wide-field spectroscopic near-IR + mid-IR capability which will greatly enhance our understanding of the first galaxies by detecting and identifying a statistical sample of the first galaxies and the first SMBH, and to chart the metal enrichment history of galaxies in the early Universe - potentially finding signatures of the very first stars to form from metal-free primordial gas. The wide-field and wavelength range of SPACE will also provide us a unique opportunity to study star formation by performing a wide survey of the Milky Way in the near-IR + mid-IR. This science project can be enabled either by a stand-alone ESA-led M mission or by an instrument for an L mission (with ESA and/or NASA, JAXA and other international space agencies) with a wide-field (sub-)millimetre capability at wavelength > 500 microns.


2007.14989
Analystic marginalization of $N(z)$ uncertainties in tomographic galaxy surveys
Hadzhiyska, et al

We present a new method to marginalize over uncertainties in redshift distributions, $N(z)$, within tomographic cosmological analyses applicable to current and upcoming photometric galaxy surveys. We allow for arbitrary deviations from the best-guess $N(z)$ governed by a general covariance matrix describing the uncertainty in our knowledge of redshift distributions. In principle, this is marginalization over hundreds or thousands of new parameters describing potential deviations as a function of redshift and tomographic bin. However, by linearly expanding the theory predictions around a fiducial model, this marginalization can be performed analytically, resulting in a modified data covariance matrix that effectively downweights the modes of the data vector that are more sensitive to redshift distribution variations. We showcase this method by applying it to the galaxy clustering measurements from the Hyper Suprime-Cam first data release. We illustrate how to marginalize over sample-variance of the calibration sample and a large general systematic uncertainty in photometric estimation methods, and explore the impact of priors imposing smoothness in the redshift distributions.


2007.15026
Dark Energy Survey Year 1 results: constraining baryonic physics in the Universe
Huang, et al

Measurements of large-scale structure are interpreted using theoretical predictions for the matter distribution, including potential impacts of baryonic physics. We constrain the feedback strength of baryons jointly with cosmology using weak lensing and galaxy clustering observables (3$\times$2pt) of Dark Energy Survey (DES) Year 1 data in combination with external information from baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) and Planck cosmic microwave background polarization. Our baryon modeling is informed by a set of hydrodynamical simulations that span a variety of baryon scenarios; we span this space via a Principal Component (PC) analysis of the summary statistics extracted from these simulations. We show that at the level of DES Y1 constraining power, one PC is sufficient to describe the variation of baryonic effects in the observables, and the first PC amplitude ($Q_1$) generally reflects the strength of baryon feedback. With the upper limit of $Q_1$ prior being bound by the Illustris feedback scenarios, we reach $\sim 20\%$ improvement in the constraint of $S_8=\sigma_8(\Omega_{\rm m}/0.3)^{0.5}=0.788^{+0.018}_{-0.021}$ compared to the original DES 3$\times$2pt analysis. This gain is driven by the inclusion of small-scale cosmic shear information down to 2.5$\arcmin$, which was excluded in previous DES analyses that did not model baryonic physics. We obtain $S_8=0.781^{+0.014}_{-0.015}$ for the combined DES Y1+Planck EE+BAO analysis with a non-informative $Q_1$ prior. In terms of the baryon constraints, we measure $Q_1=1.14^{+2.20}_{-2.80}$ for DES Y1 only and $Q_1=1.42^{+1.63}_{-1.48}$ for DESY1+Planck EE+BAO, allowing us to exclude one of the most extreme AGN feedback hydrodynamical scenario at more than $2 \sigma$.


2007.15632
KiDS-1000 cosmology: multi-probe weak gravitational lensing and spectroscopic galaxy clustering constraints 
Heymans, et al

We present a joint cosmological analysis of weak gravitational lensing observations from the Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS-1000), with redshift-space galaxy clustering observations from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS), and galaxy-galaxy lensing observations from the overlap between KiDS-1000, BOSS and the spectroscopic 2-degree Field Lensing Survey (2dFLenS). This combination of large-scale structure probes breaks the degeneracies between cosmological parameters for individual observables, resulting in a constraint on the structure growth parameter $S_8=\sigma_8 \sqrt{\Omega_{\rm m}/0.3} = 0.766^{+0.020}_{-0.014}$, that has the same overall precision as that reported by the full-sky cosmic microwave background observations from Planck. The recovered $S_8$ amplitude is low, however, by $8.3 \pm 2.6$ % relative to Planck. This result builds from a series of KiDS-1000 analyses where we validate our methodology with variable depth mock galaxy surveys, our lensing calibration with image simulations and null-tests, and our optical-to-near-infrared redshift calibration with multi-band mock catalogues and a spectroscopic-photometric clustering analysis. The systematic uncertainties identified by these analyses are folded through as nuisance parameters in our cosmological analysis. Inspecting the offset between the marginalised posterior distributions, we find that the $S_8$-difference with Planck is driven by a tension in the matter fluctuation amplitude parameter, $\sigma_8$. We quantify the level of agreement between the CMB and our large-scale structure constraints using a series of different metrics, finding differences with a significance ranging between $\sim\! 3\,\sigma$, when considering the offset in $S_{8}$, and $\sim\! 2\,\sigma$, when considering the full multi-dimensional parameter space.


2007.15633
KiDS-1000 cosmology: cosmic shear constraints and comparison between two point statistics
Asgari, et al

We present cosmological constraints from a cosmic shear analysis of the fourth data release of the Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS-1000), doubling the survey area with nine-band optical and near-infrared photometry with respect to previous KiDS analyses. Adopting a spatially flat $\Lambda$CDM model, we find $S_8 = \sigma_8 (\Omega_{\rm m}/0.3)^{0.5} = 0.759^{+0.024}_{-0.021}$ for our fiducial analysis, which is in $3\sigma$ tension with the prediction of the Planck Legacy analysis of the cosmic microwave background. We compare our fiducial COSEBIs (Complete Orthogonal Sets of E/B-Integrals) analysis with complementary analyses of the two-point shear correlation function and band power spectra, finding results to be in excellent agreement. We investigate the sensitivity of all three statistics to a number of measurement, astrophysical, and modelling systematics, finding our $S_8$ constraints to be robust and dominated by statistical errors. Our cosmological analysis of different divisions of the data pass the Bayesian internal consistency tests, with the exception of the second tomographic bin. As this bin encompasses low redshift galaxies, carrying insignificant levels of cosmological information, we find that our results are unchanged by the inclusion or exclusion of this sample.


2007.15635
KiDS-1000 catalogue: redshift distributions and their calibration
Hildebrandt, et al

We present redshift distribution estimates of galaxies selected from the fourth data release of the Kilo-Degree Survey over an area of $\sim1000$ deg$^2$ (KiDS-1000). These redshift distributions represent one of the crucial ingredients for weak gravitational lensing measurements with the KiDS-1000 data. The primary estimate is based on deep spectroscopic reference catalogues that are re-weighted with the help of a self-organising-map (SOM) to closely resemble the KiDS-1000 sources, split into five tomographic redshift bins in the photometric redshift range $0.1<z_\mathrm{B}\le1.2$. Sources are selected such that they only occupy that volume of 9-dimensional magnitude-/colour-space that is also covered by the reference samples (`gold' selection). Residual biases in the mean redshifts determined from this calibration are estimated from mock catalogues to be $\lesssim0.01$ for all five bins with uncertainties of $\sim 0.01$. This primary SOM estimate of the KiDS-1000 redshift distributions is complemented with an independent clustering redshift approach. After validation of the clustering-$z$ on the same mock catalogues and a careful assessment of systematic errors, we find no significant bias of the SOM redshift distributions with respect to the clustering-$z$ measurements. The SOM redshift distributions re-calibrated by the clustering-$z$ represent an alternative calibration of the redshift distributions with only slightly larger uncertainties in the mean redshifts of $\sim 0.01-0.02$ to be used in KiDS-1000 cosmological weak lensing analyses. As this includes the SOM uncertainty, clustering-$z$ are shown to be fully competitive on KiDS-1000 data.