The velocity dispersion of seven Seyfert 1 galaxies at z ∼ 0.37 is measured using high signal-to-noise ratio Keck spectra. Black hole (BH) mass estimates are obtained via an empirically calibrated photoionization method. We derive the BH mass velocity dispersion relationship at z ∼ 0.37. We find an offset with respect to the local relationship, in the sense of somewhat lower velocity dispersion at a fixed BH mass at z ∼ 0.37 than today, which is significant at the 97% level. The offset corresponds to Δ log σ = -0.16, with an rms scatter of 0.13 dex. If confirmed by larger samples and independent checks on systematic uncertainties and selection effects, this result would be consistent with spheroids evolving faster than BHs in the past 4 Gyr and inconsistent with pure luminosity evolution.

We measure the evolution of the correlation between black hole mass and host spheroid velocity dispersion (MBH-σ*) over the last 6 billion years, by studying three carefully selected samples of active galaxies at z = 0.57, z = 0.36 and z < 0.1. For all three samples, virial black hole masses are consistently estimated using the line dispersion of Hβ and the continuum luminosity at 5100 Å or Hα line luminosity, based on our cross calibration of the broad-line region size-luminosity relation. For the z = 0.57 sample, new stellar velocity dispersions are measured from high signal-to-noise ratio spectra obtained at the Keck Telescope, while for the two lower redshift samples they are compiled from previous works. Extending our previous result at z = 0.36, we find an offset from the local relation, suggesting that for fixed MBH, distant spheroids have on average smaller velocity dispersions than local ones. The measured offset at z = 0.57 is Δ log σ* = 0.12 ± 0.05 ± 0.06 (or Δ log MBH = 0.50 ± 0.22 ± 0.25), i.e., Δ log M BH = (3.1 ± 1.5) log (1 + z) + 0.05 ± 0.21. This is inconsistent with a tight and nonevolving universal M BH-σ* relation at the 95% CL. © 2008. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

We test the evolution of the correlation between black hole mass and bulge velocity dispersion (MBH-σ), using a carefully selected sample of 14 Seyfert 1 galaxies at z = 0.36±0.01. We measure velocity dispersion from stellar absorption lines around Mg b (5175 Å) and Fe (5270 Å) using high-S/N Keck spectra and estimate black hole mass from the Hβ line width and the optical luminosity at 5100 Å, based on the empirically calibrated photoionization method. We find a significant offset from the local relation, in the sense that velocity dispersions were smaller for given black hole masses at z = 0.36 than locally. We investigate various sources of systematic uncertainties and find that those cannot account for the observed offset. The measured offset is Δlog MBH = 0.62 ±0.10±0.25; i.e., Δlog σ = 0.15±0.03±0. 06, where the error bars include a random component and an upper limit to the systematics. At face value, this result implies a substantial growth of bulges in the last 4 Gyr, assuming that the local MBH-σ relation is the universal evolutionary endpoint. Along with two samples of active galaxies with consistently determined black hole mass and stellar velocity dispersion taken from the literature, we quantify the observed evolution with the best-fit linear relation: Δlog MBH = (1-66±0.43)z + (0.04±0.09) with respect to the local relationship of Tremaine and coworkers, and Δlog MBH = (1-55 ±0.46)z + (0.01 ±0.12) with respect to that of Ferrarese. This result is consistent with the growth of black holes predating the final growth of bulges at these mass scales (〈σ〉 = 170 km s-1). © 2006. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

We use high-resolution images obtained with the Advanced Camera for Surveys on board the Hubble Space Telescope to determine morphology, nuclear luminosity, and structural parameters of the spheroidal component for a sample of 20 Seyfert galaxies atz = 0.36. We combine these measurements with spectroscopic information from the Keck Telescope to determine the black hole mass-spheroid luminosity relation (MBH-LB), the fundamental plane (FP) of the host galaxies, and the black hole mass-spheroid velocity dispersion relation (MBH-σ). The FP is consistent with that of inactive spheroids at comparable redshifts. Assuming pure luminosity evolution, we find that the host spheroids had smaller luminosity and stellar velocity dispersion than today for a fixed MBH. The offsets correspond to Δ log LB,0 = 0.40 ± 0.11 ± 0.15 (Δlog MBH= 0.51 ± 0.14 ± 0.19) and Δloge σ = 0.13 ± 0.03 ± 0.05 (Δlog MBH = 0.54 ± 0.12 ± 0.21), respectively, for the MBH-L and M BH-σ relations (the double error bars indicate random and ystematic uncertainties, respectively). A detailed analysis of known systematic errors and selection effects shows that they cannot account for the observed offset. We conclude that the data are inconsistent with pure luminosity evolution and the existence of universal and tight scaling relations. In order to obey the three local scaling relations by z = 0, assuming no significant black hole growth, the distant spheroids have to grow their stellar mass by approximately 60% (Δ log Msph = 0.20 ± 0.14) in the next 4 billion years, while preserving their size and holding their stellar mass-to-light ratio approximately constant. The measured evolution can be expressed as MBH/Msph ∝ (1 + z) 1.5±1.0, consistent with black holes of a few × 10 8 M⊙ completing their growth before their host galaxies. Based on the disturbed morphologies of a fraction of the sample (6/20), we suggest collisional mergers with disk-dominated systems as the physical mechanism driving the evolution. © 2007. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

From high-resolution images of 23 Seyfert-1 galaxies at z=0.36 and z=0.57 obtained with the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer on board the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), we determine host-galaxy morphology, nuclear luminosity, total host-galaxy luminosity and spheroid luminosity. Keck spectroscopy is used to estimate black hole mass (M_BH). We study the cosmic evolution of the M_BH-spheroid luminosity (L_sph) relation. In combination with our previous work, totaling 40 Seyfert-1 galaxies, the covered range in BH mass is substantially increased, allowing us to determine for the first time intrinsic scatter and correct evolutionary trends for selection effects. We re-analyze archival HST images of 19 local reverberation-mapped active galaxies to match the procedure adopted at intermediate redshift. Correcting spheroid luminosity for passive luminosity evolution and taking into account selection effects, we determine that at fixed present-day V-band spheroid luminosity, M_BH/L_sph \propto (1+z)^(2.8+/-1.2). When including a sample of 44 quasars out to z=4.5 taken from the literature, with luminosity and BH mass corrected to a self-consistent calibration, we extend the BH mass range to over two orders of magnitude, resulting in M_BH/L_sph \propto (1+z)^(1.4+/-0.2). The intrinsic scatter of the relation, assumed constant with redshift, is 0.3+/-0.1 dex (<0.6 dex at 95% CL). The evolutionary trend suggests that BH growth precedes spheroid assembly. Interestingly, the M_BH-total host-galaxy luminosity relation is apparently non-evolving. It hints at either a more fundamental relation or that the spheroid grows by a redistribution of stars. However, the high-z sample does not follow this relation, indicating that major mergers may play the dominant role in growing spheroids above z~1.

We describe here the most ambitious survey currently planned in the optical, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). The LSST design is driven by four main science themes: probing dark energy and dark matter, taking an inventory of the solar system, exploring the transient optical sky, and mapping the Milky Way. LSST will be a large, wide-field ground-based system designed to obtain repeated images covering the sky visible from Cerro Pachón in northern Chile. The telescope will have an 8.4 m (6.5 m effective) primary mirror, a 9.6 deg 2 field of view, a 3.2-gigapixel camera, and six filters (ugrizy) covering the wavelength range 320-1050 nm. The project is in the construction phase and will begin regular survey operations by 2022. About 90% of the observing time will be devoted to a deep-wide-fast survey mode that will uniformly observe a 18,000 deg 2 region about 800 times (summed over all six bands) during the anticipated 10 yr of operations and will yield a co-added map to r ∼27.5. These data will result in databases including about 32 trillion observations of 20 billion galaxies and a similar number of stars, and they will serve the majority of the primary science programs. The remaining 10% of the observing time will be allocated to special projects such as Very Deep and Very Fast time domain surveys, whose details are currently under discussion. We illustrate how the LSST science drivers led to these choices of system parameters, and we describe the expected data products and their characteristics.

Previous detections of individual astrophysical sources of neutrinos are limited to the Sun and the supernova 1987A, whereas the origins of the diffuse flux of high-energy cosmic neutrinos remain unidentified. On 22 September 2017, we detected a high-energy neutrino, IceCube-170922A, with an energy of ~290 tera-electron volts. Its arrival direction was consistent with the location of a known γ-ray blazar, TXS 0506+056, observed to be in a flaring state. An extensive multiwavelength campaign followed, ranging from radio frequencies to γ-rays. These observations characterize the variability and energetics of the blazar and include the detection of TXS 0506+056 in very-high-energy γ-rays. This observation of a neutrino in spatial coincidence with a γ-ray-emitting blazar during an active phase suggests that blazars may be a source of high-energy neutrinos.