49 research outputs found
The success of HIV combination prevention: The Dean Street model
The 56 Dean Street combination prevention model, a strong engagement with the LGBTQI community and flexible services adapted to usersâ changing needs led to an 80% drop in HIV diagnoses in gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) from 2015 to 2017. We describe the service changes at 56 Dean Street since 2012 which resulted in an increase in the frequency of HIV testing, the introduction of pre-exposure prophylaxis, earlier HIV diagnosis and a shorter time to viral suppression in those living with HIV. This model could be adapted to deliver similar results in those settings of high HIV prevalence among GBMSM and where access to technological innovation in healthcare and engagement with the community can be achieved
A Census of Star-Forming Galaxies in the z~9-10 Universe based on HST+Spitzer Observations Over 19 CLASH clusters: Three Candidate z~9-10 Galaxies and Improved Constraints on the Star Formation Rate Density at z~9
We utilise a two-color Lyman-Break selection criterion to search for z~9-10
galaxies over the first 19 clusters in the CLASH program. A systematic search
yields three z~9-10 candidates. While we have already reported the most robust
of these candidates, MACS1149-JD, two additional z~9 candidates are also found
and have H_{160}-band magnitudes of ~26.2-26.9. A careful assessment of various
sources of contamination suggests <~1 contaminants for our z~9-10 selection. To
determine the implications of these search results for the LF and SFR density
at z~9, we introduce a new differential approach to deriving these quantities
in lensing fields. Our procedure is to derive the evolution by comparing the
number of z~9-10 galaxy candidates found in CLASH with the number of galaxies
in a slightly lower redshift sample (after correcting for the differences in
selection volumes), here taken to be z~8. This procedure takes advantage of the
fact that the relative volumes available for the z~8 and z~9-10 selections
behind lensing clusters are not greatly dependent on the details of the lensing
models. We find that the normalization of the UV LF at z~9 is just
0.28_{-0.20}^{+0.39}\times that at z~8, ~1.4_{-0.8}^{+3.0}x lower than
extrapolating z~4-8 LF results. While consistent with the evolution in the UV
LF seen at z~4-8, these results marginally favor a more rapid evolution at z>8.
Compared to similar evolutionary findings from the HUDF, our result is less
insensitive to large-scale structure uncertainties, given our many independent
sightlines on the high-redshift universe.Comment: 22 pages, 11 figures, 5 tables, accepted for publication in the
Astrophysical Journal, updated to include the much deeper Spitzer/IRAC
observations over our three z~9-10 candidate
CLASH: Photometric redshifts with 16 HST bands in galaxy cluster fields
The Cluster Lensing And Supernovae survey with Hubble (CLASH) is an Hubble
Space Telescope (HST) Multi-Cycle Treasury program observing 25 massive galaxy
clusters. CLASH observations are carried out in 16 bands from UV to NIR to
derive accurate and reliable estimates of photometric redshifts. We present the
CLASH photometric redshifts and study the photometric redshift accuracy of the
arcs in more detail for the case of MACS1206.2-0847. We use the publicly
available Le Phare and BPZ photometric redshift codes on 17 CLASH galaxy
clusters. Using Le Phare code for objects with StoN>=10, we reach a precision
of 3%(1+z) for the strong lensing arcs, which is reduced to 2.4%(1+z) after
removing outliers. For galaxies in the cluster field the corresponding values
are 4%(1+z) and 3%(1+z). Using mock galaxy catalogues, we show that 3%(1+z)
precision is what one would expect from the CLASH photometry when taking into
account extinction from dust, emission lines and the finite range of SEDs
included in the photo-z template library. We study photo-z results for
different aperture photometry and find that the SExtractor isophotal photometry
works best. Le Phare and BPZ give similar photo-z results for the strong
lensing arcs as well as galaxies of the cluster field. Results are improved
when optimizing the photometric aperture shape showing an optimal aperture size
around 1" radius giving results which are equivalent to isophotal photometry.
Tailored photometry of the arcs improve the photo-z results.Comment: Accepted in A&A on nov 201
The role of frequent HIV testing in diagnosing HIV in men who have sex with men
OBJECTIVES:
In the UK, quarterly HIV testing is recommended for highârisk men who have sex with men (MSM). In this manuscript we determined the risk of being newly diagnosed with HIV in MSM by their HIV testing history, considering both the frequency and periodicity of testing.
METHODS:
Data on HIV incidence in MSM attending a sexual health clinic (SHC) in England in 2013â2014 with testing history (previous 2 years) were obtained from GUMCAD, the national sexually transmitted infection (STI) surveillance system in England. HIV testing patterns among MSM were defined using the frequency and periodicity of testing, based on 3 month intervals, in the year preceding the first attendance during the study period. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to determine the association between HIV testing pattern and time to HIV diagnosis with and without adjustment for demographic confounders. Analyses were stratified by risk stratum, with âhigh riskâ defined as a history of a bacterial STI in the past year. Adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are reported.
RESULTS:
Among the 37 702 HIVânegative MSM attending an SHC in 2013â2014, 1105 (3%) were diagnosed with HIV infection within 1 year of their first attendance. The probability of HIV diagnosis was highest in MSM who were tested quarterly compared with those who were not tested in the past year (aHR 2.51; 95% CI 1.33â4.74); this increased 1.8âfold among highârisk MSM (aHR 4.48; 95% CI 0.97â21.17).
CONCLUSIONS:
The probability of subsequent HIV diagnosis was greatest in highârisk MSM who were tested most frequently. Quarterly HIV testing increased the likelihood of identifying undiagnosed HIV infection and should remain a continued recommendation for highârisk MSM
CLASH: New Multiple-Images Constraining the Inner Mass Profile of MACS J1206.2-0847
We present a strong-lensing analysis of the galaxy cluster MACS J1206.2-0847
(=0.44) using UV, Optical, and IR, HST/ACS/WFC3 data taken as part of the
CLASH multi-cycle treasury program, with VLT/VIMOS spectroscopy for some of the
multiply-lensed arcs. The CLASH observations, combined with our mass-model,
allow us to identify 47 new multiply-lensed images of 12 distant sources. These
images, along with the previously known arc, span the redshift range 1\la
z\la5.5, and thus enable us to derive a detailed mass distribution and to
accurately constrain, for the first time, the inner mass-profile of this
cluster. We find an inner profile slope of (in the range [1\arcsec, 53\arcsec], or 5\la r \la300 kpc), as
commonly found for relaxed and well-concentrated clusters. Using the many
systems uncovered here we derive credible critical curves and Einstein radii
for different source redshifts. For a source at , the critical
curve encloses a large area with an effective Einstein radius of
\theta_{E}=28\pm3\arcsec, and a projected mass of . From the current understanding of structure formation in
concordance cosmology, these values are relatively high for clusters at
, so that detailed studies of the inner mass distribution of clusters
such as MACS J1206.2-0847 can provide stringent tests of the CDM
paradigm.Comment: 7 pages, 1 table, 4 figures; submitted to ApJ Letters; V3: minor
correction
RELICS: The Reionization Lensing Cluster Survey and the Brightest High-z Galaxies
Massive foreground galaxy clusters magnify and distort the light of objects behind them, permitting a view into both the extremely distant and intrinsically faint galaxy populations. We present here the z ~ 6-8 candidate high-redshift galaxies from the Reionization Lensing Cluster Survey (RELICS), a Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescope survey of 41 massive galaxy clusters spanning an area of â200 arcminÂČ. These clusters were selected to be excellent lenses, and we find similar high-redshift sample sizes and magnitude distributions as the Cluster Lensing And Supernova survey with Hubble (CLASH). We discover 257, 57, and eight candidate galaxies at z ~ 6, 7, and 8 respectively, (322 in total). The observed (lensed) magnitudes of the z ~ 6 candidates are as bright as AB mag ~23, making them among the brightest known at these redshifts, comparable with discoveries from much wider, blank-field surveys. RELICS demonstrates the efficiency of using strong gravitational lenses to produce high-redshift samples in the epoch of reionization. These brightly observed galaxies are excellent targets for follow-up study with current and future observatories, including the James Webb Space Telescope
The Cluster Lensing and Supernova Survey with Hubble (CLASH): Strong Lensing Analysis of Abell 383 from 16-Band HST WFC3/ACS Imaging
We examine the inner mass distribution of the relaxed galaxy cluster Abell
383 in deep 16-band HST/ACS+WFC3 imaging taken as part of the CLASH multi-cycle
treasury program. Our program is designed to study the dark matter distribution
in 25 massive clusters, and balances depth with a wide wavelength coverage to
better identify lensed systems and generate precise photometric redshifts. This
information together with the predictive strength of our strong-lensing
analysis method identifies 13 new multiply-lensed images and candidates, so
that a total of 27 multiple-images of 9 systems are used to tightly constrain
the inner mass profile, (r<160 kpc).
We find consistency with the standard distance-redshift relation for the full
range spanned by the lensed images, 1.01<z<6.03, with the higher redshift
sources deflected through larger angles as expected. The inner mass profile
derived here is consistent with the results of our independent weak-lensing
analysis of wide-field Subaru images, with good agreement in the region of
overlap. The overall mass profile is well fitted by an NFW profile with
M_{vir}=(5.37^{+0.70}_{-0.63}\pm 0.26) x 10^{14}M_{\odot}/h and a relatively
high concentration, c_{vir}=8.77^{+0.44}_{-0.42}\pm 0.23, which lies above the
standard c-M relation similar to other well-studied clusters. The critical
radius of Abell 383 is modest by the standards of other lensing clusters,
r_{E}\simeq16\pm2\arcsec (for z_s=2.55), so the relatively large number of
lensed images uncovered here with precise photometric redshifts validates our
imaging strategy for the CLASH survey. In total we aim to provide similarly
high-quality lensing data for 25 clusters, 20 of which are X-ray selected
relaxed clusters, enabling a precise determination of the representative mass
profile free from lensing bias. (ABRIDGED)Comment: 15 pages, 14 figures, 2 tabels; V3 matches the submitted version
later published in Ap
RELICS: spectroscopy of gravitationally lensed z â 2 reionization-era analogues and implications for CâIII] detections at z > 6
Recent observations have revealed the presence of strong CâIII] emission (EWCIII]>20 Ă
) in z > 6 galaxies, the origin of which remains unclear. In an effort to understand the nature of these line emitters, we have initiated a survey targeting CâIII] emission in gravitationally lensed reionization-era analogues identified in Hubble Space Telescope imaging of clusters from the Reionization Lensing Cluster Survey. Here, we report initial results on four galaxies selected to have low stellar masses (2â8 Ă 107 Mâ) and J125-band flux excesses indicative of intense [OâIII] + HâÎČ emission (EW[OIII]+HÎČ = 500â2000 Ă
), similar to what has been observed at z > 6. We detect CâIII] emission in three of the four sources, with the CâIII] EW reaching values seen in the reionization era (EWCIII]â17â22 Ă
) in the two sources with the strongest optical line emission (EW[OIII]+HÎČâ2000 Ă
). We have obtained a Magellan/FIRE (Folded-port InfraRed Echellette) near-infrared spectrum of the strongest CâIII] emitter in our sample, revealing gas that is both metal poor and highly ionized. Using photoionization models, we are able to simultaneously reproduce the intense CâIII] and optical line emission for extremely young (2â3 Myr) and metal-poor (0.06â0.08 Zâ) stellar populations, as would be expected after a substantial upturn in the star formation rate of a low-mass galaxy. The sources in this survey are among the first for which CâIII] has been used as the primary means of redshift confirmation. We suggest that it should be possible to extend this approach to z > 6 with current facilities, using CâIII] to measure redshifts of objects with IRAC excesses indicating EW[OIII]+HÎČâ2000 Ă
, providing a method of spectroscopic confirmation independent of Lyâα
A highly magnified candidate for a young galaxy seen when the Universe was 500 Myrs old
The early Universe at redshift z\sim6-11 marks the reionization of the
intergalactic medium, following the formation of the first generation of stars.
However, those young galaxies at a cosmic age of \lesssim 500 million years
(Myr, at z \gtrsim 10) remain largely unexplored as they are at or beyond the
sensitivity limits of current large telescopes. Gravitational lensing by galaxy
clusters enables the detection of high-redshift galaxies that are fainter than
what otherwise could be found in the deepest images of the sky. We report the
discovery of an object found in the multi-band observations of the cluster
MACS1149+22 that has a high probability of being a gravitationally magnified
object from the early universe. The object is firmly detected (12 sigma) in the
two reddest bands of HST/WFC3, and not detected below 1.2 {\mu}m, matching the
characteristics of z\sim9 objects. We derive a robust photometric redshift of z
= 9.6 \pm 0.2, corresponding to a cosmic age of 490 \pm 15Myr (i.e., 3.6% of
the age of the Universe). The large number of bands used to derive the redshift
estimate make it one of the most accurate estimates ever obtained for such a
distant object. The significant magnification by cluster lensing (a factor of
\sim15) allows us to analyze the object's ultra-violet and optical luminosity
in its rest-frame, thus enabling us to constrain on its stellar mass,
star-formation rate and age. If the galaxy is indeed at such a large redshift,
then its age is less than 200 Myr (at the 95% confidence level), implying a
formation redshift of zf \lesssim 14. The object is the first z>9 candidate
that is bright enough for detailed spectroscopic studies with JWST,
demonstrating the unique potential of galaxy cluster fields for finding highly
magnified, intrinsically faint galaxies at the highest redshifts.Comment: Submitted to the Nature Journal. 39 Pages, 13 figure
The Astropy Project: Building an inclusive, open-science project and status of the v2.0 core package
The Astropy project supports and fosters the development of open-source and openly-developed Python packages that provide commonly-needed functionality to the astronomical community. A key element of the Astropy project is the core package Astropy, which serves as the foundation for more specialized projects and packages. In this article, we provide an overview of the organization of the Astropy project and summarize key features in the core package as of the recent major release, version 2.0. We then describe the project infrastructure designed to facilitate and support development for a broader ecosystem of inter-operable packages. We conclude with a future outlook of planned new features and directions for the broader Astropy project