Friday, May 16, 2008, 11:00 am — Large Seminar Room, Bldg. 510
Observational cosmology has dramatically matured over the past decade, revealing the distribution of dark matter and constraining cosmological parameters to an unprecedented accuracy. In this quest, gravitational lensing has been an invaluable tool.
I will briefly review the impact of gravitational lensing on cosmology, from the discovery of giant arcs to the recent detection of lensing of the Cosmic Microwave Background. I will then present two series of new results obtained with the SDSS:
(i) the detection of the systematic magnification of quasars by galaxies, which can be used to map the distribution of dark matter up to cosmological scales;
(ii) the first detection of micron-size particles (called dust) on large scales around galaxies. While such a result is of interest for the study of galaxy evolution, it has also direct implications for dark energy measurements using supernovae since intergalactic dust gives rise to extinction effects on background sources. I will discuss this new challenge and propose potential solutions for future dark energy experiments with upcoming surveys.
Hosted by: Morgan May
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