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A measurement of the cosmological mass density from clustering in the 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey

Nature volume 410, pages 169–173 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

The large-scale structure in the distribution of galaxies is thought to arise from the gravitational instability of small fluctuations in the initial density field of the Universe. A key test of this hypothesis is that forming superclusters of galaxies should generate a systematic infall of other galaxies. This would be evident in the pattern of recessional velocities, causing an anisotropy in the inferred spatial clustering of galaxies. Here we report a precise measurement of this clustering, using the redshifts of more than 141,000 galaxies from the two-degree-field (2dF) galaxy redshift survey. We determine the parameter β = Ω0.6/b = 0.43 ± 0.07, where Ω is the total mass-density parameter of the Universe and b is a measure of the ‘bias’ of the luminous galaxies in the survey. (Bias is the difference between the clustering of visible galaxies and of the total mass, most of which is dark.) Combined with the anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background, our results favour a low-density Universe with Ω ≈ 0.3.

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Figure 1: The distribution of galaxies in part of the two-degree-field galaxy redshift survey (2dFGRS), drawn from a total of 141,402 galaxies.
Figure 2: The redshift-space correlation function for the 2dFGRS, ξ(σ,π), plotted as a function of transverse (σ) and radial (π) pair separation.
Figure 3: The flattening of the redshift-space correlation function is quantified by the quadrupole-to-monopole ratio, ξ2/ξ0.
Figure 4: Likelihood contours for β and the fingers-of-God smearing parameter σp, based on the data in Fig. 3 (considering 8 h-1 Mpc < r < 25 h-1 Mpc).
Figure 5: The dimensionless matter power spectrum at zero redshift, Δ2(k), as predicted from the allowed range of models that fit the microwave-background anisotropy data, plus the assumption that H0 = 70 km s-1 Mpc-1 ± 10%.

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Acknowledgements

The 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey was made possible through the dedicated efforts of the staff of the Anglo-Australian Observatory, both in creating the two-degree-field instrument and in supporting it on the telescope.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Royal Observatory, Blackford Hill, Edinburgh, EH9 3HJ, UK

    John A. Peacock, Will J. Percival & Will Sutherland

  2. Department of Physics, University of Durham, South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK

    Shaun Cole, Peder Norberg, Carlton M. Baugh & Carlos S. Frenk

  3. Anglo-Australian Observatory, P.O. Box 296, Epping, 2121, New South Wales, Australia

    Joss Bland-Hawthorn, Terry Bridges, Russell D. Cannon, Ian Lewis & Keith Taylor

  4. Research School of Astronomy & Astrophysics, The Australian National University, Weston Creek, 2611, ACT, Australia

    Matthew Colless, Carole Jackson, Bruce A. Peterson & Ian Price

  5. Astrophysics Research Institute, Liverpool John Moores University,, Twelve Quays House, Birkenhead, L14 1LD, UK

    Chris Collins

  6. Department of Astrophysics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, New South Wales, Australia

    Warrick Couch, Kathryn Deeley & Roberto De Propris

  7. Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Keble Road, Oxford, OX3RH, UK

    Gavin Dalton & Will Sutherland

  8. School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St Andrews, North Haugh, St Andrews, KY6 9SS, Fife, UK

    Simon P. Driver

  9. Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0HA, UK

    George Efstathiou, Richard S. Ellis & Ofer Lahav

  10. Department of Astronomy, Caltech, Pasadena, 91125, California, USA

    Richard S. Ellis & Keith Taylor

  11. Department of Physics & Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, 21218-2686, Maryland, USA

    Karl Glazebrook

  12. Department of Physics, University of Leeds, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK

    Stuart Lumsden

  13. School of Physics & Astronomy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK

    Steve Maddox

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Correspondence to John A. Peacock.

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Peacock, J., Cole, S., Norberg, P. et al. A measurement of the cosmological mass density from clustering in the 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey. Nature 410, 169–173 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/35065528

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