The Universe at z=5: High-redshift quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Princeton University, Princeton NJ

Investigators

Abstract

AST- 0071091 Strauss The goals of this proposal are to use the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) photometric data to identify high redshift quasars (Z ~5) and conduct a follow up analysis of these objects. The initial SDSS commissioning data have already been used to develop and prove the discovery technique and the final sample size is expected to be ~ 100 objects. These data open up a new regime and will allow the PI-CO-I's to study quasar demographics with redshift; the relationship between galaxy formation and quasar activity at high redshifts; and studies of intervening gas at high redshifts. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey is an ambitious project involving a consortium of universities and institutions around the country and around the world, to develop an accurate and complete census of the heavens in three dimensions. Using a dedicated 2.5m telescope at Apache Point Observatory, New Mexico, it will survey the sky over the next five years, compiling detailed data on 100 million galaxies, stars, and quasars. Early results from the survey have shown its potential on many fronts, including the search for the most distant objects in the universe. Quasars, which appear as unresolved, exceedingly luminous points of light in the sky, are believed to be the result of the radiation given off as material falls into a black hole one billion times more massive than the sun. Their extreme luminosity allow them to be detected at very great distances. The Sloan Survey has allowed us to discover a great number of the most distant quasars yet known. We plan to do a number of investigations of these enigmatic objects over the next few years: a). Compile complete samples of distant quasars, to study their tendency to cluster together and to understand their evolution with time. b). Study the physical properties of these systems with telescopes sensitive to a large range of wavelengths, to understand the processes by which they formed and how they generate their tremendous luminosities. c). Study the immediate environment of these quasars to learn about their effect on neighboring galaxies, and the diffuse gas which permeates the space between quasars. d). Discover new classes of quasars and other phenomena which our complete survey should bring to light. Funding for this project was provided by the NSF program for Extragalactic Astronomy & Cosmology (AST/EXC). ***