Journal
MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
Volume 457, Issue 3, Pages 2301-2317Publisher
OXFORD UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stw144
Keywords
gravitational lensing: weak; galaxies: evolution; cosmology: observations; large-scale structure of Universe
Categories
Funding
- National Science Foundation [AST-1313169]
- Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship
- Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
- National Science Foundation
- U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science
- University of Arizona
- Brazilian Participation Group
- Brookhaven National Laboratory
- Carnegie Mellon University
- University of Florida
- French Participation Group
- German Participation Group
- Harvard University
- Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias
- Michigan State/Notre Dame/JINA Participation Group
- Johns Hopkins University
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics
- Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
- New Mexico State University
- New York University
- Ohio State University
- Pennsylvania State University
- University of Portsmouth
- Princeton University
- Spanish Participation Group
- University of Tokyo
- University of Utah
- Vanderbilt University
- University of Virginia
- University of Washington
- Yale University
- Direct For Mathematical & Physical Scien
- Division Of Astronomical Sciences [1313169] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
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Measurements of intrinsic alignments of galaxy shapes with the large-scale density field, and the inferred intrinsic alignments model parameters, are sensitive to the shape measurement methods used. In this paper, we measure the intrinsic alignments of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-III (SDSS-III) Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) low redshift (LOWZ) galaxies using three different shape measurement methods (re-Gaussianization, isophotal, and de Vaucouleurs), identifying a variation in the inferred intrinsic alignments amplitude at the 40 per cent level between these methods, independent of the galaxy luminosity or other properties. We also carry out a suite of systematics tests on the shapes and their two-point correlation functions, identifying a pronounced contribution from additive point spread function systematics in the de Vaucouleurs shapes. Since different methods measure galaxy shapes at different effective radii, the trends we identify in the intrinsic alignments amplitude are consistent with the interpretation that the outer regions of galaxy shapes are more responsive to tidal fields, resulting in isophote twisting and stronger alignments for isophotal shapes. We observe environment dependence of ellipticity, with brightest galaxies in groups being rounder on average compared to satellite and field galaxies. We also study the anisotropy in intrinsic alignments measurements introduced by projected shapes, finding effects consistent with predictions of the non-linear alignment model and hydrodynamic simulations. The large variations seen using the different shape measurement methods have important implications for intrinsic alignments forecasting and mitigation with future surveys.
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