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Supervoid Origin of the Cold Spot in the Cosmic Microwave Background
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 July 2015
Abstract
We use a WISE-2MASS-Pan-STARRS1 galaxy catalog to search for a supervoid in the direction of the Cosmic Microwave Background Cold Spot. We obtain photometric redshifts using our multicolor data set to create a tomographic map of the galaxy distribution. The radial density profile centred on the Cold Spot shows a large low density region, extending over 10's of degrees. Motivated by previous Cosmic Microwave Background results, we test for underdensities within two angular radii, 5°, and 15°. Our data, combined with an earlier measurement by Granett et al. 2010, are consistent with a large Rvoid=(192 ± 15)h−1 Mpc (2σ) supervoid with δ ≃ −0.13 ± 0.03 centered at z=0.22 ± 0.01. Such a supervoid, constituting a ∼3.5 σ fluctuation in the ΛCDM model, is a plausible cause for the Cold Spot.
- Type
- Contributed Papers
- Information
- Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 10 , Symposium S306: Statistical Challenges in 21st Century Cosmology , May 2014 , pp. 269 - 272
- Copyright
- Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2015
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