Envisioning the Distance Ladder in the Era of the Habitable Worlds Observatory
Fuente:
arXiv
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Preprint |
| Published: |
2025
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1866908431489695744 |
|---|---|
| author | Anand, Gagandeep Durbin, Meredith Beaton, Rachael Jensen, Joseph Riess, Adam |
| author_facet | Anand, Gagandeep Durbin, Meredith Beaton, Rachael Jensen, Joseph Riess, Adam |
| contents | The current state-of-the-art cosmic distance ladder requires three rungs--geometric distances, primary indicators, and Type Ia Supernovae--to achieve a 1% measurement of the Hubble constant $H_0$. The Habitable Worlds Observatory will have the sensitivity and resolution to reduce this to a two-step measurement, eliminating the third rung entirely and reaching into the Hubble flow with stellar distance indicators such as Cepheid variables and the tip of the red giant branch alone. We discuss the requirements for a program to measure $H_0$ to 1% with HWO here, including telescope and instrument design considerations. We also comment on the potential of HWO to measure distances to low-mass dwarf galaxies via their RR Lyrae stars. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_02056 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Envisioning the Distance Ladder in the Era of the Habitable Worlds Observatory Anand, Gagandeep Durbin, Meredith Beaton, Rachael Jensen, Joseph Riess, Adam Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics The current state-of-the-art cosmic distance ladder requires three rungs--geometric distances, primary indicators, and Type Ia Supernovae--to achieve a 1% measurement of the Hubble constant $H_0$. The Habitable Worlds Observatory will have the sensitivity and resolution to reduce this to a two-step measurement, eliminating the third rung entirely and reaching into the Hubble flow with stellar distance indicators such as Cepheid variables and the tip of the red giant branch alone. We discuss the requirements for a program to measure $H_0$ to 1% with HWO here, including telescope and instrument design considerations. We also comment on the potential of HWO to measure distances to low-mass dwarf galaxies via their RR Lyrae stars. |
| title | Envisioning the Distance Ladder in the Era of the Habitable Worlds Observatory |
| topic | Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.02056 |