Skip to content

Towards a Precision Cosmology from Starburst Galaxies at z>2

E. R. Siegel, R. Guzmán, Jorge P. Gallego, M. Orduña López, P. Rodrí guez Hidalgo

astro-pharXiv:astro-ph/0410612

Abstract

This work investigates the use of a well-known empirical correlation between the velocity dispersion, metallicity, and luminosity in H beta of nearby HII galaxies to measure the distances to HII-like starburst galaxies at high redshifts. This correlation is applied to a sample of 15 starburst galaxies with redshifts between z=2.17 and z=3.39 to constrain Omegam, using data available from the literature. A best-fit value of Omegam = 0.21 +0.30 -0.12 in a Lambda-dominated universe and of Omegam = 0.11 +0.37 -0.19 in an open universe is obtained. A detailed analysis of systematic errors, their causes, and their effects on the values derived for the distance moduli and Omegam is carried out. A discussion of how future work will improve constraints on Omegam by reducing the errors is also presented.

Create a lesson