Galaxies selected on the basis of their emission line strength show low metallicities, regardless of their redshifts. We conclude this from a sample of faint galaxies at redshifts between 0.6 < z < 2.4, selected by their prominent emission lines in low-resolution grism spectra in the optical with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and in the near-infrared using Wide-Field Camera 3 (WFC3). Using a sample of 11 emission line galaxies (ELGs) at 0.6 < z < 2.4 with luminosities of -22 < M_B < -19, which have [OII], H\beta, and [OIII] line flux measurements from the combination of two grism spectral surveys, we use the R23 method to derive the gas-phase oxygen abundances: 7.5 < 12+log(O/H) < 8.5. The galaxy stellar masses are derived using Bayesian based Markov Chain Monte Carlo (\piMC^2) fitting of their Spectral Energy Distribution (SED), and span the mass range 8.1 < log(M_*/M_\sun) < 10.1. These galaxies show a mass-metallicity (M-L) and Luminosity-Metallicity (L-Z) relation, which is offset by –0.6 dex in metallicity at given absolute magnitude and stellar mass relative to the local SDSS galaxies, as well as continuum selected DEEP2 samples at similar redshifts. The emission-line selected galaxies most resemble the local "green peas" galaxies and Lyman-alpha galaxies at z~0.3 and z~2.3 in the M-Z and L-Z relations and their morphologies. The G-M_{20} morphology analysis shows that 10 out of 11 show disturbed morphology, even as the star-forming regions are compact. These galaxies may be intrinsically metal poor, being at early stages of formation, or the low metallicities may be due to gas infall and accretion due to mergers.

Small amounts of star formation in elliptical galaxies are suggested by several results: surprisingly young ages from optical line indices, cooling X-ray gas, and mid-IR dust emission. Such star formation has previously been difficult to detect, but using UV Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) imaging, we have identified individual young stars and star clusters in four nearby ellipticals. This technique is orders of magnitude more sensitive than other methods, allowing detections of star formation to 10^{-5} Msun/yr. Ongoing star formation is detected in all galaxies, including three ellipticals that have previously exhibited potential signposts of star forming conditions (NGC 4636, NGC 4697, and NGC 4374), and our control galaxy, the typical “red and dead” NGC 3379. The current star formation in our closest targets, where we are most complete, is between 2-8 X 10^{-5} Msun/yr. The star formation history was roughly constant from 0.5-1.5 Gyr (at 3-5 X 10^{-4} Msun/yr), but decreased by a factor of several in the past 0.3 Gyr. Most star clusters have a mass between 10^2 – 10^4 Msun. The specific star formation rates of ~10^{-16}/yr (at the present day) or ~10^{-14}/yr (when averaging over the past Gyr) would require timescales 4-6 orders of magnitude longer than the age of the Universe to build up the stellar mass of the galaxies, quantifying for the first time the level of quenching they have experienced relative to their average value. There is no obvious correlation between either the presence or spatial distribution of postulated star formation indicators and the star formation we detect.

We present a multi-wavelength photometric study of ~15,000 resolved stars in the nearby spiral galaxy M83 (NGC5236, D=4.61Mpc) based on Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 observations using four filters: F336W, F438W, F555W, and F814W. We select 50 regions (an average size of 260 pc by 280 pc) in the spiral arm and inter-arm areas of M83, and determine the age distribution of the luminous stellar populations in each region. This is accomplished by correcting for extinction towards each individual star by comparing its colors with predictions from stellar isochrones. We compare the resulting luminosity weighted mean ages of the luminous stars in the 50 regions with those determined from several independent methods, including the number ratio of red-to-blue supergiants, morphological appearance of the regions, surface brightness fluctuations, and the ages of clusters in the regions. We find reasonably good agreement between these methods. We also find that young stars are much more likely to be found in concentrated aggregates along spiral arms, while older stars are more dispersed. These results are consistent with the scenario that star formation is associated with the spiral arms, and stars form primarily in star clusters and then disperse on short timescales to form the field population. The locations of Wolf-Rayet stars are found to correlate with the positions of many of the youngest regions, providing additional support for our ability to accurately estimate ages. We address the effects of spatial resolution on the measured colors, magnitudes, and age estimates. While individual stars can occasionally show measurable differences in the colors and magnitudes, the age estimates for entire regions are only slightly affected.

We report the discovery of 33 Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~8 detected in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) imaging as part of the Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) pure-parallel survey. The ongoing BoRG survey currently has the largest area (274 arcmin^2) with Y_098 (or Y_105), J_125, and H_160 band coverage needed to search for z~8 galaxies, about three times the current CANDELS area, and slightly larger than what will be the final CANDELS wide component with Y_105 data. Our sample of 33 relatively bright Y_098-dropout galaxies have J_125 band magnitudes between 25.5 and 27.4 mag. This is the largest sample of bright (J_125 <~ 27.4) z~8 galaxy candidates presented to date. Combining our dataset with the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field (HUDF09) dataset, we constrain the rest-frame ultraviolet galaxy luminosity function at z~8 over the widest dynamic range currently available. The combined datasets are well fitted by a Schechter function, i.e. \phi(L) = \phi_* (L/L_*)^{\alpha}\ e^{-(L/L_*)}, without evidence for an excess of sources at the bright end. At 68% confidence, we derive \phi_* = (4.3^{+3.5}_{-2.1}) \times 10^{-4} Mpc^{-3}, M_* = -20.26^{+0.29}_{-0.34}, and a very steep faint-end slope \alpha = -1.98^{+0.23}_{-0.22}. While the best-fit parameters still have a strong degeneracy, especially between \phi_* and M_*, our improved coverage at the bright end has reduced the uncertainty of the faint-end power-law slope at z~8 compared to the best previous determination at +/-0.4. With a future expansion of the BoRG survey, combined with planned ultradeep WFC3/IR observations, it will be possible to further reduce this uncertainty and clearly demonstrate the steepening of the faint-end slope compared to measurements at lower redshift, thereby confirming the key role played by small galaxies in the reionization of the universe.

We report the discovery of 33 Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~8 detected in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) imaging as part of the Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) pure-parallel survey. The ongoing BoRG survey currently has the largest area (274 arcmin^2) with Y_098 (or Y_105), J_125, and H_160 band coverage needed to search for z~8 galaxies, about three times the current CANDELS area, and slightly larger than what will be the final CANDELS wide component with Y_105 data. Our sample of 33 relatively bright Y_098-dropout galaxies have J_125 band magnitudes between 25.5 and 27.4 mag. This is the largest sample of bright (J_125 <~ 27.4) z~8 galaxy candidates presented to date. Combining our dataset with the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field (HUDF09) dataset, we constrain the rest-frame ultraviolet galaxy luminosity function at z~8 over the widest dynamic range currently available. The combined datasets are well fitted by a Schechter function, i.e. \phi(L) = \phi_* (L/L_*)^{\alpha}\ e^{-(L/L_*)}, without evidence for an excess of sources at the bright end. At 68% confidence, we derive \phi_* = (4.3^{+3.5}_{-2.1}) \times 10^{-4} Mpc^{-3}, M_* = -20.26^{+0.29}_{-0.34}, and a very steep faint-end slope \alpha = -1.98^{+0.23}_{-0.22}. While the best-fit parameters still have a strong degeneracy, especially between \phi_* and M_*, our improved coverage at the bright end has reduced the uncertainty of the faint-end power-law slope at z~8 compared to the best previous determination at +/-0.4. With a future expansion of the BoRG survey, combined with planned ultradeep WFC3/IR observations, it will be possible to further reduce this uncertainty and clearly demonstrate the steepening of the faint-end slope compared to measurements at lower redshift, thereby confirming the key role played by small galaxies in the reionization of the universe.

We present the first science results from our Hubble Space Telescope Survey for Lyman limit absorption systems (LLS) using the low dispersion spectroscopic modes of the Advanced Camera for Surveys and the Wide Field Camera 3. Through an analysis of 71 quasars, we determine the incidence frequency of LLS per unit redshift and per unit path length, l(z) and l(x) respectively, over the redshift range 1 < z< 2.6, and find a weighted mean of l(x)=0.29 +/-0.05 for 2.0 < z < 2.5 through a joint analysis of our sample and that of Ribaudo et al. (2011). Through stacked spectrum analysis, we determine a median (mean) value of the mean free path to ionizing radiation at z=2.4 of lambda_mfp = 243(252)h^(-1) Mpc, with an error on the mean value of +/- 43h^(-1) Mpc. We also re-evaluate the estimates of lambda_mfp from Prochaska et al. (2009) and place constraints on the evolution of lambda_mfp with redshift, including an estimate of the "breakthrough" redshift of z = 1.6. Consistent with results at higher z, we find that a significant fraction of the opacity for absorption of ionizing photons comes from systems with N_HI <= 10^{17.5} cm^(-2) with a value for the total Lyman opacity of tau_lyman = 0.40 +/- 0.15. Finally, we determine that at minimum, a 5-parameter (4 power-law) model is needed to describe the column density distribution function f(N_HI, X) at z \sim 2.4, find that f(N_HI,X) undergoes no significant change in shape between z \sim 2.4 and z \sim 3.7, and provide our best fit model for f(N_HI,X).

We present a best-fit analysis on the holographic dark energy model characterized by the conformal-age-like length. Based on the Union2 compilation of 557 supernova Ia data, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, the cosmic microwave background radiation data from the 7-yr Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe and the Hubble constant measurement from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope, we show that the model gives the minimal $\chi^2_{min}=549.428$, which is comparable to $\chi^2_{\Lambda {\rm CDM}}=546.478$ for the $\Lambda$CDM model. The single parameter $d$ concerned in the model is found to be $d=0.235^{+0.005}_{-0.005} ^{+0.008}_{-0.009}$ at 1 $\sigma$ and 2 $\sigma$ confidence levels. The resulting constraints on the present fractional energy density of matter and the equation of state are $\Omega_{m}=0.278^{+0.017}_{-0.016} ^{+0.028}_{-0.026}$ and $w_{de}=-1.252^{+0.025}_{-0.025} ^{+0.042}_{-0.041}$ respectively. The model leads to a slightly larger fraction of matter comparing to the $\Lambda$CDM model. We also provide a systematic analysis on the cosmic evolutions of the fractional energy density of dark energy, the equation of state of dark energy, the deceleration parameter and the statefinder. It is noticed that the equation of state crosses from $w_{de}>-1$ to $w_{de}0$) to accelerated expansion ($q<0$) recently, and the statefinder may serve as a sensitive diagnostic to distinguish the CHDE model with the $\Lambda$CDM model.

We present a best-fit analysis on the holographic dark energy model characterized by the conformal-age-like length. Based on the Union2 compilation of 557 supernova Ia data, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, the cosmic microwave background radiation data from the 7-yr Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe and the Hubble constant measurement from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope, we show that the model gives the minimal $\chi^2_{min}=549.428$, which is comparable to $\chi^2_{\Lambda {\rm CDM}}=546.478$ for the $\Lambda$CDM model. The single parameter $d$ concerned in the model is found to be $d=0.235^{+0.005}_{-0.005} ^{+0.008}_{-0.009}$ at 1 $\sigma$ and 2 $\sigma$ confidence levels. The resulting constraints on the present fractional energy density of matter and the equation of state are $\Omega_{m}=0.278^{+0.017}_{-0.016} ^{+0.028}_{-0.026}$ and $w_{de}=-1.252^{+0.025}_{-0.025} ^{+0.042}_{-0.041}$ respectively. The model leads to a slightly larger fraction of matter comparing to the $\Lambda$CDM model. We also provide a systematic analysis on the cosmic evolutions of the fractional energy density of dark energy, the equation of state of dark energy, the deceleration parameter and the statefinder. It is noticed that the equation of state crosses from $w_{de}>-1$ to $w_{de}0$) to accelerated expansion ($q<0$) recently, and the statefinder may serve as a sensitive diagnostic to distinguish the CHDE model with the $\Lambda$CDM model.

We explore the cosmological implications of five modified gravity (MG) models by using the recent cosmological observational data, including the recently released SNLS3 type Ia supernovae sample, the cosmic microwave background anisotropy data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7-yr observations, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, and the latest Hubble constant measurement utilizing the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. The MG models considered include the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati(DGP) model, two $f(R)$ models, and two $f(T)$ models. We find that compared with the $\Lambda$CDM model, MG models can not lead to a appreciable reduction of the $\chi^2_{min}$. The analysis of AIC and BIC shows that the simplest cosmological constant model($\Lambda$CDM) is still most preferred by the current data, and the DGP model is strongly disfavored. In addition, from the observational constraints, we also reconstruct the evolutions of the growth factor in these models. We find that the current available growth factor data are not enough to distinguish these MG models from the $\Lambda$CDM model.

We explore the cosmological implications of five modified gravity (MG) models by using the recent cosmological observational data, including the recently released SNLS3 type Ia supernovae sample, the cosmic microwave background anisotropy data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7-yr observations, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, and the latest Hubble constant measurement utilizing the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. The MG models considered include the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati(DGP) model, two $f(R)$ models, and two $f(T)$ models. We find that compared with the $\Lambda$CDM model, MG models can not lead to a appreciable reduction of the $\chi^2_{min}$. The analysis of AIC and BIC shows that the simplest cosmological constant model($\Lambda$CDM) is still most preferred by the current data, and the DGP model is strongly disfavored. In addition, from the observational constraints, we also reconstruct the evolutions of the growth factor in these models. We find that the current available growth factor data are not enough to distinguish these MG models from the $\Lambda$CDM model.

We present the first results of the Hubble Wide Field Camera 3 Test of Surfaces in the Outer Solar System (H/WTSOSS). The purpose of this survey was to measure the surface properties of a large number of Kuiper belt objects and attempt to infer compositional and dynamical correlations. We find that the Centaurs and the low-perihelion scattered disk and resonant objects exhibit virtually identical bifurcated optical colour distributions and make up two well defined groups of object. Both groups have highly correlated optical and NIR colours which are well described by a pair of two component mixture models that have different red components, but share a common neutral component. The small, $H_{606}\gtrsim5.6$ high-perihelion excited objects are entirely consistent with being drawn from the two branches of the mixing model suggesting that the colour bifurcation of the Centaurs is apparent in all small excited objects. On the other hand, objects larger than $H_{606}\sim5.6$ are not consistent with the mixing model, suggesting some evolutionary process avoided by the smaller objects. The existence of a bifurcation amongst all excited populations argues that the two separate classes of object existed in the primordial disk before the excited Kuiper belt was populated. The cold classical objects exhibit a different type of surface which has colours that are consistent with being drawn from the red branch of the mixing model, but with much higher albedos.

We present Hubble Space Telescope near-infrared transmission spectroscopy of the transiting exoplanet HD 189733b, using Wide Field Camera 3. This consists of time-series spectra of two transits, used to measure the wavelength dependence of the planetary radius. These observations aim to test whether the Rayleigh scattering haze detected at optical wavelengths extends into the near-infrared, or if it becomes transparent leaving molecular features to dominate the transmission spectrum. Due to saturation and non-linearity affecting the brightest (central) pixels of the spectrum, light curves were extracted from the blue and red ends of the spectra only, corresponding to wavelength ranges of 1.099-1.168 um and 1.521-1.693 um, respectively, for the first visit, and 1.082-1.128 um and 1.514-1.671 um for the second. The light curves were fitted using a Gaussian process model to account for instrumental systematics whilst simultaneously fitting for the transit parameters. This gives values of the planet-to-star radius ratio for the blue and red light curves of 0.15650\pm0.00048 and 0.15634\pm0.00032, respectively, for visit one and 0.15716\pm0.00078 and 0.15630\pm0.00037 for visit 2 (using a quadratic limb darkening law). The planet-to-star radius ratios measured in both visits are consistent, and we see no evidence for the drop in absorption expected if the haze that is observed in the optical becomes transparent in the infrared. This tentatively suggests that the haze dominates the transmission spectrum of HD 189733b into near-infrared wavelengths, although more robust observations are required to provide conclusive evidence.

In the first of a series of forthcoming publications, we present a panchromatic catalog of 102 visually-selected early-type galaxies (ETGs) from observations in the Early Release Science (ERS) program with the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) of the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey-South (GOODS-S) field. Our ETGs span a large redshift range, 0.35 < z < 1.5, with each redshift spectroscopically-confirmed by previous published surveys of the ERS field. We combine our measured WFC3 ERS and ACS GOODS-S photometry to gain continuous sensitivity from the rest-frame far-UV to near-IR emission for each ETG. The superior spatial resolution of the HST over this panchromatic baseline allows us to classify the ETGs by their small-scale internal structures, as well as their local environment. By fitting stellar population spectral templates to the broad-band photometry of the ETGs, we determine that the average masses of the ETGs are comparable to the characteristic stellar mass of massive galaxies, 11< log(M [Solar]) < 12. By transforming the observed photometry into the GALEX FUV and NUV, Johnson V, and SDSS g' and r' bandpasses we identify a noteworthy diversity in the rest-frame UV-optical colors and find the mean rest-frame (FUV-V)=3.5 and (NUV-V)=3.3, with 1$\sigma$ standard deviations approximately equal to 1.0. The blue rest-frame UV-optical colors observed for most of the ETGs are evidence for star-formation during the preceding gigayear, but no systems exhibit UV-optical photometry consistent with major recent (<~50 Myr) starbursts. Future publications which address the diversity of stellar populations likely to be present in these ETGs, and the potential mechanisms by which recent star-formation episodes are activated, are discussed.

We present recent Hubble Space Telescope observations of the inner filament of Centaurus A, using the new Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) $F225W, F657N$ and $F814W$ filters. We find a young stellar population near the south-west tip of the filament. Combining the WFC3 dataset with archival Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) $F606W$ observations, we are able to constrain the ages of these stars to <=10 Myrs, with best-fit ages of 1-4 Myrs. No further recent star-formation is found along the filament. Based on the location and age of this stellar population, and the fact that there is no radio lobe or jet activity near the star-formation, we propose an updated explanation for the origin of the inner filament. Sutherland et al. (1993) suggested that radio jet-induced shocks can drive the observed optical line emission. We argue that such shocks can naturally arise due to a weak cocoon-driven bow shock (rather than from the radio jet directly), propagating through the diffuse interstellar medium from a location near the inner northern radio lobe. The shock can overrun a molecular cloud, triggering star-formation in the dense molecular cores. Ablation and shock heating of the diffuse gas then gives rise to the observed optical line and X-ray emission. Deeper X-ray observations should show more diffuse emission along the filament.

We report the discovery of a Type Ia supernova (SNIa) at redshift z=1.55 with the infrared detector of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3-IR) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). This object was discovered in CANDELS imaging data of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, and followed as part of the CANDELS+CLASH Supernova project, comprising the SN search components from those two HST multi-cycle treasury programs. This is the highest redshift SNIa with direct spectroscopic evidence for classification. It is also the first SN Ia at z>1 found and followed in the infrared, providing a full light curve in rest-frame optical bands. The classification and redshift are securely defined from a combination of multi-band and multi-epoch photometry of the SN, ground-based spectroscopy of the host galaxy, and WFC3-IR grism spectroscopy of both the SN and host. This object is the first of a projected sample at z>1.5 that will be discovered by the CANDELS and CLASH programs. The full CANDELS+CLASH SN Ia sample will enable unique tests for evolutionary effects that could arise due to differences in SN Ia progenitor systems as a function of redshift. This high-z sample will also allow measurement of the SN Ia rate out to z~2, providing a complementary constraint on SN Ia progenitor models.

We combine new Wide Field Camera~3 IR Channel (WFC3/IR) F160W (H) imaging data for NGC1399, the central galaxy in the Fornax cluster, with archival F475W (g), F606W (V), F814W (I), and F850LP (z) optical data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). The purely optical g-I, V-I, and g-z colors of NGC1399’s rich globular cluster (GC) system exhibit clear bimodality, at least for magnitudes $I_814 > 21.5$. The optical-IR I-H color distribution appears unimodal, and this impression is confirmed by mixture modeling analysis. The V-H colors show marginal evidence for bimodality, consistent with bimodality in V-I and unimodality in I-H. If bimodality is imposed for I-H with a double Gaussian model, the preferred blue/red split differs from that for optical colors; these “differing bimodalities” mean that the optical and optical-IR colors cannot both be linearly proportional to metallicity. Consistent with the differing color distributions, the dependence of I-H on g-I for the matched GC sample is significantly nonlinear, with an inflection point near the trough in the g-I color distribution; the result is similar for the I-H dependence on g-z colors taken from the ACS Fornax Cluster Survey. These g-z colors have been calibrated empirically against metallicity; applying this calibration yields a continuous, skewed, but single-peaked metallicity distribution. Taken together, these results indicate that nonlinear color-metallicity relations play an important role in shaping the observed bimodal distributions of optical colors in extragalactic GC systems.

We present a new distance determination to the Galactic globular cluster 47 Tucanae by fitting the spectral energy distributions of its white dwarfs to pure hydrogen atmosphere white dwarf models. Our photometric dataset is obtained from a 121 orbit Hubble Space Telescope program using the Wide Field Camera 3 UVIS/IR channels, capturing F390W, F606W, F110W, and F160W images. These images cover more than 60 square arcmins and extend over a radial range of 5-13.7 arcmin (6.5-17.9 pc) within the globular cluster. Using a likelihood analysis, we obtain a best fitting unreddened distance modulus of (m – M)o=13.36+/-0.02+/-0.06 corresponding to a distance of 4.70+/-0.04+/-0.13 kpc, where the first error is random and the second is systematic. We also search the white dwarf photometry for infrared excess in the F160W filter, indicative of debris disks or low mass companions, and find no convincing cases within our sample.

New instrumentation is providing new insights into intermediate mass pulsating Cepheids, particularly about their formation and history. Three approaches are discussed, using space (Hubble and Chandra) and ground-based studies (radial velocities). First, we are conducting a survey of Cepheids with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) to identify possible resolved companions (for example Eta Aql) and thus provide constraints on star formation. Followup X-ray observations (Chandra and XMM-Newton) can confirm whether possible low mass companions are young enough to be physical companions of Cepheids. In a related study of intermediate mass stars, Chandra X-ray observations of late B stars in Tr 16 have been used to determine the fraction which have X-ray active low mass companions. Finally, the Tennessee State Automatic Spectroscopic Telescope AST and the Moscow University group have obtained velocities of a number of Cepheids. As an example, the orbit of V350 Sgr has been redetermined, providing a new level of accuracy to the orbital velocity amplitude, which is needed for mass determination.

Capitalizing on the observational advantage offered by its tiny M dwarf host, we present HST/WFC3 grism measurements of the transmission spectrum of the super-Earth exoplanet GJ1214b. These are the first published WFC3 observations of a transiting exoplanet atmosphere. After correcting for a ramp-like instrumental systematic, we achieve nearly photon-limited precision in these observations, finding the transmission spectrum of GJ1214b to be flat between 1.1 and 1.7 microns. Inconsistent with a cloud-free solar composition atmosphere at 8.2 sigma, the measured achromatic transit depth most likely implies a large mean molecular weight for GJ1214b’s outer envelope. A dense atmosphere rules out bulk compositions for GJ1214b that explain its large radius by the presence of a very low density gas layer surrounding the planet. High-altitude clouds can alternatively explain the flat transmission spectrum, but they would need to be optically thick up to 10 mbar or consist of particles with a range of sizes approaching 1 micron in diameter.

We use deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 near-infrared imaging obtained of the GOODS-South field as part of the CANDELS survey to investigate a stellar mass-limited sample of quiescent galaxies at 1.5 < z < 2.5. We measure surface brightness profiles for these galaxies using a method that properly measures low surface brightness flux at large radii. We find that quiescent galaxies at z ~ 2 very closely follow Sersic profiles, with n_{median} = 3.7, and have no excess flux at large radii. Their effective radii are a factor ~ 4 smaller than those of low-redshift quiescent galaxies of similar mass. However, there is significant spread in sizes (sigma_{log r_e} = 0.24), with the largest z ~ 2 galaxies lying close to the z = 0 mass-size relation. We compare the stellar mass surface density profiles with those of massive elliptical galaxies in the Virgo cluster and confirm that most of the mass-growth which occurs between z ~ 2 and z = 0 must be due to accretion of material onto the outer regions of the galaxies. Additionally, we investigate the evolution in the size distribution of massive quiescent galaxies. We find that the minimum size growth required for z ~ 2 quiescent galaxies to fall within the z = 0 size distribution is a factor ~ 2 smaller than the total median size growth between z ~ 2 and z = 0.

We use deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 near-infrared imaging obtained of the GOODS-South field as part of the CANDELS survey to investigate a stellar mass-limited sample of quiescent galaxies at 1.5 < z < 2.5. We measure surface brightness profiles for these galaxies using a method that properly measures low surface brightness flux at large radii. We find that quiescent galaxies at z ~ 2 very closely follow Sersic profiles, with n_{median} = 3.7, and have no excess flux at large radii. Their effective radii are a factor ~ 4 smaller than those of low-redshift quiescent galaxies of similar mass. However, there is significant spread in sizes (sigma_{log r_e} = 0.24), with the largest z ~ 2 galaxies lying close to the z = 0 mass-size relation. We compare the stellar mass surface density profiles with those of massive elliptical galaxies in the Virgo cluster and confirm that most of the mass-growth which occurs between z ~ 2 and z = 0 must be due to accretion of material onto the outer regions of the galaxies. Additionally, we investigate the evolution in the size distribution of massive quiescent galaxies. We find that the minimum size growth required for z ~ 2 quiescent galaxies to fall within the z = 0 size distribution is a factor ~ 2 smaller than the total median size growth between z ~ 2 and z = 0.

We use deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 near-infrared imaging obtained of the GOODS-South field as part of the CANDELS survey to investigate a stellar mass-limited sample of quiescent galaxies at 1.5 < z < 2.5. We measure surface brightness profiles for these galaxies using a method that properly measures low surface brightness flux at large radii. We find that quiescent galaxies at z ~ 2 very closely follow Sersic profiles, with n_{median} = 3.7, and have no excess flux at large radii. Their effective radii are a factor ~ 4 smaller than those of low-redshift quiescent galaxies of similar mass. However, there is significant spread in sizes (sigma_{log r_e} = 0.34), with the largest z ~ 2 galaxies lying close to the z = 0 mass-size relation. We compare the stellar mass surface density profiles with those of massive elliptical galaxies in the Virgo cluster and confirm that most of the mass-growth which occurs between z ~ 2 and z = 0 must be due to accretion of material onto the outer regions of the galaxies. Additionally, we investigate the evolution in the size distribution of massive quiescent galaxies. We find that the minimum size growth required for z ~ 2 quiescent galaxies to fall within the z = 0 size distribution is a factor ~ 2 smaller than the total median size growth between z ~ 2 and z = 0.

We use deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 near-infrared imaging obtained of the GOODS-South field as part of the CANDELS survey to investigate a stellar mass-limited sample of quiescent galaxies at 1.5 < z < 2.5. We measure surface brightness profiles for these galaxies using a method that properly measures low surface brightness flux at large radii. We find that quiescent galaxies at z ~ 2 very closely follow Sersic profiles, with n_{median} = 3.7, and have no excess flux at large radii. Their effective radii are a factor ~ 4 smaller than those of low-redshift quiescent galaxies of similar mass. However, there is significant spread in sizes (sigma_{log r_e} = 0.34), with the largest z ~ 2 galaxies lying close to the z = 0 mass-size relation. We compare the stellar mass surface density profiles with those of massive elliptical galaxies in the Virgo cluster and confirm that most of the mass-growth which occurs between z ~ 2 and z = 0 must be due to accretion of material onto the outer regions of the galaxies. Additionally, we investigate the evolution in the size distribution of massive quiescent galaxies. We find that the minimum size growth required for z ~ 2 quiescent galaxies to fall within the z = 0 size distribution is a factor ~ 2 smaller than the total median size growth between z ~ 2 and z = 0.

We present four-color images of CRL 2688 obtained in 2009 using the Wide-Field Camera 3 on HST. The F606W image is compared with archival images in very similar filters to monitor the proper motions of nebular structure. We find that the bright N-S lobes have expanded uniformly by 2.5% and that the ensemble of rings has translated radially by 0.07 in 6.65 y. The rings were ejected every 100y for ~4 millennia until the lobes formed 250y ago. Starlight scattered from the edges of the dark E-W dust lane is coincident with extant H2 images and leading tips of eight pairs of CO outflows. We interpret this as evidence that fingers lie within geometrically opposite cones of opening angles {\approx} 30{\circ} like those in CRL618. By combining our results of the rings with 12CO absorption from the extended AGB wind we ascertain that the rings were ejected at ~18 km s-1 with very little variation and that the distance to CRL2688, v_{exp}$ / ${\dot\theta}_exp$, is 300 – 350 pc. Our 2009 imaging program included filters that span 0.6 to 1.6{\mu}m. We constructed a two-dimensional dust scattering model of stellar radiation through CRL2688 that successfully reproduces the details of the nebular geometry, its integrated spectral energy distribution, and nearly all of its color variations. The model implies that the optical opacity of the lobes >~ 1, the dust particle density in the rings decreases as radius^{-3} and that the mass and momentum of the AGB winds and their rings have increased over time.

We discuss the structural and morphological properties of galaxies in a z=1.62 proto-cluster using near-IR imaging data from Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 data of the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). The cluster galaxies exhibit a clear color-morphology relation: galaxies with colors of quiescent stellar populations generally have morphologies consistent with spheroids, and galaxies with colors consistent with ongoing star formation have disk-like and irregular morphologies. The size distribution of the quiescent cluster galaxies shows a deficit of compact (< 1kpc), massive galaxies compared to CANDELS field galaxies at z=1.6. As a result the cluster quiescent galaxies have larger average effective sizes compared to field galaxies at fixed mass at greater than 90% significance. Combined with data from the literature, the size evolution of quiescent cluster galaxies is relatively slow from z~1.6 to the present, growing as (1+z)^(-0.6+/-0.1). If this result is generalizable, then it implies that physical processes associated with the denser cluster region seems to have caused accelerated size growth in quiescent galaxies prior to z=1.6 and slower subsequent growth at z<1.6 compared to galaxies in the lower density field. The quiescent cluster galaxies at z=1.6 have higher ellipticities compared to lower redshift samples at fixed mass, and their surface-brightness profiles suggest that they contain extended stellar disks. We argue the cluster galaxies require dissipationless (i.e., gas-poor or "dry") mergers to reorganize the disk material and to match the relations for ellipticity, stellar mass, size, and color of early-type galaxies in z<1 clusters.

We discuss the structural and morphological properties of galaxies in a z=1.62 proto-cluster using near-IR imaging data from the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 taken as part of the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). The cluster galaxies exhibit a clear color-morphology relation: galaxies with colors of quiescent stellar populations generally have morphologies consistent with spheroids, and galaxies with colors consistent with ongoing star formation have disk-like and irregular morphologies. The size distribution of the quiescent cluster galaxies shows a deficit of compact (< 1 kpc), massive galaxies compared to similarly selected galaxies at z=1.6 in the field in the CANDELS data. As a result the cluster quiescent galaxies have larger average effective sizes compared to field galaxies at fixed mass. Combined with data from the literature, the size evolution of quiescent cluster galaxies is relatively slow from z ~ 1.6 to the present, growing as (1+z)^(-0.6+/-0.1). Any physical processes associated with the denser cluster region seems to have caused accelerated size growth in quiescent galaxies prior to z=1.6 and slower subsequent growth at z<1.6 compared to galaxies in the lower density field. The quiescent cluster galaxies at z=1.6 have higher ellipticities compared to lower redshift samples at fixed mass, and their surface-brightness profiles suggest that they contain extended stellar disk components. We argue the cluster galaxies require dissipationless (i.e., gas-poor or “dry') mergers to reorganize the disk material and to match the measured relations for ellipticity, stellar mass, size, and color of early-type galaxies in z<1 clusters.

We present results from a search for gravitationally lensed galaxies present in the Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Wide Field Camera-3 (WFC3) images of the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). We present one bona fide lens system in UDS and two compact lens candidates in the GOODS-S field. The lensing system in UDS involves two background galaxies, one at z=1.847 lensed to an arc and a counterimage, and the second at a photometric redshift of z=2.32^{+0.10}_{-0.06} lensed to a double image. We reconstruct the lensed sources in the source plane and find in each of the two cases the sources can be separated to a pair of galaxies. The sources responsible for the arc are compact with effective radii of 0.3 to 0.4 kpc in WFC3 J_{125}-band and a total stellar mass and a star-formation rate of 2.1_{-0.4}^{+2.4} times 10^7 M_sun and 2.3_{-1.7}^{+ 0.6} M_sun yr^{-1}, respectively.The abnormally high H_{160}-band flux of this source is likely due to OIII emission lines with a rest-frame equivalent width about 700 Angstroms for OIII 5007 Angstroms. The sources responsible for the double image have corresponding values of about 0.4 to 0.5 kpc, 1.4_{-0.8}^{+1.9} times 10^9 M_sun, and 8.7_{-7.0}^{+11.1} M_sun yr^{-1}. Once completed CANDELS is expected to contain about 15 lensing systems and will allow statistical studies on both lensing mass profiles and z ~ 2 lensed galaxies.

We present measurements of 68 classical Cepheids with periods from 10 to 78 days observed in the near-infrared by the PHAT Program using the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The combination of HST’s resolution and the use of near-infrared measurements provides a dramatic reduction in the dispersion of the Period–Luminosity relation over the present optical, ground-based data. Even using random-phase magnitudes we measure a dispersion of just 0.17 mag, implying a dispersion of just 0.12 mag for mean magnitudes. The error in the mean for this relation is 1% in distance. Combined with similar observations of Cepheids in other hosts and independent distance determinations, we measure a distance to M31 of mu_0=24.42 +/- 0.05 (statistical) +/- 0.03 (systematic), 765 +/- 28 kpc, in good agreement with past measurements though with a better, 3% precision here. The result is also in good agreement with independent distance determinations from two detached eclipsing binaries allowing for an independent calibration of the Cepheid luminosities and a determination of the Hubble constant.

The presence of extremely compact galaxies at z~2 and their subsequent growth in physical size has been the cause of much puzzlement. We revisit the question using deep infrared Wide Field Camera 3 data to probe the rest-frame optical structure of 935 host galaxies selected with 0.4<z 10^10.7 Msol using optical and near-infrared photometry in the UKIRT Ultra Deep Survey and GOODS-South fields of the CANDELS survey. At each redshift, the most compact sources are those with little or no star formation, and we find that the mean size of these systems grows by a factor of 3.5 +- 0.3 over this redshift interval. The new data are sufficiently deep to enable us to identify companions to these hosts whose stellar masses are ten times smaller, while still yielding suitably accurate photometric redshifts to define a likely physical association. By searching for faint companions around 404 quiescent hosts within a projected physical annulus 10 < R < 30 kpc/h, we estimate the minor merger rate over the redshift range 0.4 < z 0.1 may explain most of the size evolution observed at z >~ 1 if a relatively short merger timescale is assumed, but the rapid growth seen at higher redshift likely requires additional physical processes.

We obtained 3 epochs of simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Wide Field Camera 3 and Chandra observations of the ultraluminous X-ray source NGC 5408 X-1. The counterpart of the X-ray source is seen in all HST filters, from the UV through the NIR, and for the first time, we resolve the optical nebula around the ULX. We identified a small OB association near the ULX that may be the birthplace of the system. The stellar association is young, ~ 5 Myr, contains massive stars up to 40 solar masses, and is thus similar to associations seen near other ULXs, albeit younger. The UV/Optical/NIR spectral energy distribution (SED) of the ULX counterpart is consistent with that of a B0I supergiant star. We are also able to fit the whole SED from the X-rays to the NIR with an irradiated disk model. The three epochs of data show only marginal variability and thus, we cannot firmly conclude on the nature of the optical emission.

We present Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 slitless grism spectroscopy of 28 emission-line galaxies at z~2, in the GOODS-S region of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). The high sensitivity of these grism observations, with 1-sigma detections of emission lines to f > 2.5×10^{-18} erg/s/cm^2, means that the galaxies in the sample are typically ~7 times less massive (median M_* = 10^{9.5} M_sun) than previously studied z~2 emission-line galaxies. Despite their lower mass, the galaxies have OIII/Hb ratios which are very similar to previously studied z~2 galaxies and much higher than the typical emission-line ratios of local galaxies. The WFC3 grism allows for unique studies of spatial gradients in emission lines, and we stack the two-dimensional spectra of the galaxies for this purpose. In the stacked data the OIII emission line is more spatially concentrated than the Hb emission line with 98.1 confidence. We additionally stack the X-ray data (all sources are individually undetected), and find that the average L(OIII)/L(0.5-10 keV) ratio is intermediate between typical z~0 obscured active galaxies and star-forming galaxies. Together the compactness of the stacked OIII spatial profile and the stacked X-ray data suggest that at least some of these low-mass, low-metallicity galaxies harbor weak active galactic nuclei.

We present Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 slitless grism spectroscopy of 28 emission-line galaxies at z~2, in the GOODS-S region of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). The high sensitivity of these grism observations, with >5-sigma detections of emission lines to f > 2.5×10^{-18} erg/s/cm^2, means that the galaxies in the sample are typically ~7 times less massive (median M_* = 10^{9.5} M_sun) than previously studied z~2 emission-line galaxies. Despite their lower mass, the galaxies have OIII/Hb ratios which are very similar to previously studied z~2 galaxies and much higher than the typical emission-line ratios of local galaxies. The WFC3 grism allows for unique studies of spatial gradients in emission lines, and we stack the two-dimensional spectra of the galaxies for this purpose. In the stacked data the OIII emission line is more spatially concentrated than the Hb emission line with 98.1 confidence. We additionally stack the X-ray data (all sources are individually undetected), and find that the average L(OIII)/L(0.5-10 keV) ratio is intermediate between typical z~0 obscured active galaxies and star-forming galaxies. Together the compactness of the stacked OIII spatial profile and the stacked X-ray data suggest that at least some of these low-mass, low-metallicity galaxies harbor weak active galactic nuclei.

We present first results from the 3D-HST program, a near-IR spectroscopic survey performed with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. We have used 3D-HST spectra to measure redshifts and Halpha equivalent widths for a stellar mass-limited sample of 34 galaxies at 1<z10^11 M(sun) in the COSMOS, GOODS, and AEGIS fields. We find that a substantial fraction of massive galaxies at this epoch are forming stars at a high rate: the fraction of galaxies with Halpha equivalent widths >10 A is 59%, compared to 10% among SDSS galaxies of similar masses at z=0.1. Galaxies with weak Halpha emission show absorption lines typical of 2-4 Gyr old stellar populations. The structural parameters of the galaxies, derived from the associated WFC3 F140W imaging data, correlate with the presence of Halpha: quiescent galaxies are compact with high Sersic index and high inferred velocity dispersion, whereas star-forming galaxies are typically large two-armed spiral galaxies, with low Sersic index. Some of these star forming galaxies might be progenitors of the most massive S0 and Sa galaxies. Our results challenge the idea that galaxies at fixed mass form a homogeneous population with small scatter in their properties. Instead we find that massive galaxies form a highly diverse population at z>1, in marked contrast to the local Universe.

We present first results from the 3D-HST program, a near-IR spectroscopic survey performed with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. We have used 3D-HST spectra to measure redshifts and Halpha equivalent widths for a stellar mass-limited sample of 34 galaxies at 1<z10^11 M(sun) in the COSMOS, GOODS, and AEGIS fields. We find that a substantial fraction of massive galaxies at this epoch are forming stars at a high rate: the fraction of galaxies with Halpha equivalent widths >10 A is 59%, compared to 10% among SDSS galaxies of similar masses at z=0.1. Galaxies with weak Halpha emission show absorption lines typical of 2-4 Gyr old stellar populations. The structural parameters of the galaxies, derived from the associated WFC3 F140W imaging data, correlate with the presence of Halpha: quiescent galaxies are compact with high Sersic index and high inferred velocity dispersion, whereas star-forming galaxies are typically large two-armed spiral galaxies, with low Sersic index. Some of these star forming galaxies might be progenitors of the most massive S0 and Sa galaxies. Our results challenge the idea that galaxies at fixed mass form a homogeneous population with small scatter in their properties. Instead we find that massive galaxies form a highly diverse population at z>1, in marked contrast to the local Universe.

We present first results from the 3D-HST program, a near-IR spectroscopic survey performed with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. We have used 3D-HST spectra to measure redshifts and Halpha equivalent widths for a stellar mass-limited sample of 34 galaxies at 1<z10^11 M(sun) in the COSMOS, GOODS, and AEGIS fields. This is the first time such measurements have been obtained for a mass-complete spectroscopic sample at z>1. We find that a substantial fraction of massive galaxies at this epoch are forming stars at a high rate: the fraction of galaxies with Halpha equivalent widths >10 A is 38%, compared to 10% among SDSS galaxies of similar masses at z=0.1. Galaxies with weak Halpha emission show absorption lines typical of 2-4 Gyr old stellar populations. The structural parameters of the galaxies, derived from the associated WFC3 F140W imaging data, correlate with the presence of Halpha: quiescent galaxies are compact with high Sersic index and high inferred velocity dispersion, whereas star-forming galaxies are typically large two-armed spiral galaxies, with low Sersic index. Some of these star forming galaxies might be progenitors of the most massive S0 and Sa galaxies. Our results challenge the idea that galaxies at fixed mass form a homogeneous population with small scatter in their properties. Instead we find that massive galaxies form a highly diverse population at z>1, in marked contrast to the local Universe.

We identify an abundant population of extreme emission line galaxies (EELGs) at redshift z~1.7 in the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS) imaging from Hubble Space Telescope/Wide Field Camera 3 (HST/WFC3). 69 EELG candidates are selected by the large contribution of exceptionally bright emission lines to their near-infrared broad-band magnitudes. Supported by spectroscopic confirmation of strong [OIII] emission lines — with rest-frame equivalent widths ~1000\AA — in the four candidates that have HST/WFC3 grism observations, we conclude that these objects are galaxies with 10^8 Msol in stellar mass, undergoing an enormous starburst phase with M_*/(dM_*/dt) of only ~15 Myr. These bursts may cause outflows that are strong enough to produce cored dark matter profiles in low-mass galaxies. The individual star formation rates and the co-moving number density (3.7×10^-4 Mpc^-3) can produce in ~4 Gyr much of the stellar mass density that is presently contained in 10^8-10^9 Msol dwarf galaxies. Therefore, our observations provide a strong indication that many or even most of the stars in present-day dwarf galaxies formed in strong, short-lived bursts, mostly at z>1.

We identify an abundant population of extreme emission line galaxies (EELGs) at redshift z=1.6-1.8 in the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS) imaging from Hubble Space Telescope/Wide Field Camera 3 (HST/WFC3). 69 EELG candidates are selected by the large contribution of exceptionally bright emission lines to their near-infrared, broad-band fluxes. Supported by spectroscopic confirmation of strong [OIII] emission lines — with rest-frame equivalent widths ~1000\AA — in the four candidates that have HST/WFC3 grism observations, we conclude that these objects are dwarf galaxies with ~10^8 Msol in stellar mass, undergoing an enormous starburst phase with M*/(dM*/dt) of only ~15 Myr. These bursts may cause outflows that are strong enough to produce cored dark matter profiles in low-mass galaxies. The individual star formation rates and the co-moving number density (3.7 x 10^-4 Mpc^-3) can produce in ~4 Gyr much of the stellar mass density that is presently contained in 10^8-10^9 Msol dwarf galaxies. Therefore, our observations provide a strong indication that many or even most of the stars in present-day dwarf galaxies formed in strong, short-lived bursts, mostly at z>1.

We combine near-ultraviolet (NUV; 2250 {\AA}) and optical (U, B, V, I) imaging from the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), on board the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), to study the globular cluster (GC) population in NGC 4150, a sub-L* (M_B ~ -18.48 mag) early-type minor-merger remnant in the Coma I cloud. We use broadband NUV-optical photometry from the WFC3 to estimate individual ages, metallicities, masses and line-of-sight extinctions [E_(B-V)] for 63 bright (M_V < -5 mag) GCs in this galaxy. In addition to a small GC population with ages greater than 10 Gyr, we find a dominant population of clusters with ages centred around 6 Gyr, consistent with the expected peak of stellar mass assembly in faint early-types residing in low-density environments. The old and intermediate-age GCs in NGC 4150 are metal-poor, with metallicities less than 0.1 ZSun, and reside in regions of low extinction (E_(B-V) 0.3 ZSun) clusters that have formed within the last Gyr and reside in relatively dusty (E_(B-V) > 0.3 mag) regions that are coincident with the part of the galaxy core that hosts significant recent star formation. Cluster disruption models (in which ~80-90% of objects younger than a few 10^8 yr dissolve every dex in time) suggest that the bulk of these young clusters are a transient population.

The acquisition of deep Near-IR imaging with Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope has provided the opportunity to study the very-high redshift Universe. For galaxies up to $z\approx 7.7$ sufficient wavelength coverage exists to probe the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) continuum without contamination from either Lyman-$\alpha$ emission or the Lyman-$\alpha$ break. In this work we use Near-IR imaging to measure the rest-frame UV continuum colours of galaxies at $4.7<z<7.7$. We are have carefully defined a colour-colour selection to minimise any inherent bias in the measured UV continuum slope for the drop-out samples. For the highest-redshift sample ($6.7<z<7.7$), selected as $z_{f850lp}$-band dropouts, we find mean UV continuum colours approximately equal to zero (AB), consistent with a dust-free, solar metallicity, star forming population (or a moderately dusty population of low metallicity). At lower-redshift we find that the mean UV continuum colours of galaxies (over the same luminosity range) are redder, and that galaxies with higher luminosities are also slightly redder on average. One interpretation of this is that lower-redshift and more luminous galaxies are dustier, however this interpretation is complicated by the effects of the star formation history and metallicity and potentially the initial mass function on the UV continuum colours.

The acquisition of deep Near-IR imaging with Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope has provided the opportunity to study the very-high redshift Universe. For galaxies up to $z\approx 7.7$ sufficient wavelength coverage exists to probe the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) continuum without contamination from either Lyman-$\alpha$ emission or the Lyman-$\alpha$ break. In this work we use Near-IR imaging to measure the rest-frame UV continuum colours of galaxies at $4.7<z<7.7$. We are have carefully defined a colour-colour selection to minimise any inherent bias in the measured UV continuum slope for the drop-out samples. For the highest-redshift sample ($6.7<z<7.7$), selected as $z_{f850lp}$-band dropouts, we find mean UV continuum colours approximately equal to zero (AB), consistent with a dust-free, solar metallicity, star forming population (or a moderately dusty population of low metallicity). At lower-redshift we find that the mean UV continuum colours of galaxies (over the same luminosity range) are redder, and that galaxies with higher luminosities are also slightly redder on average. One interpretation of this is that lower-redshift and more luminous galaxies are dustier, however this interpretation is complicated by the effects of the star formation history and metallicity and potentially the initial mass function on the UV continuum colours.

We probe the cosmic acceleration by using the recently released SNLS3 sample of 472 type Ia supernovae. Combining this type Ia supernovae dataset with the cosmic microwave background anisotropy data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7-yr observations, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, and the Hubble constant measurement from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope, we measure the dark energy equation of state $w$ and the deceleration parameter $q$ as functions of redshift by using the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder parametrization. Our result is consistent with a cosmological constant at 1$\sigma$ confidence level, without evidence for the recent slowing down of the cosmic acceleration. Furthermore, we consider three binned parametrizations ($w$ is piecewise constant in redshift $z$) based on different binning methods. The similar results are obtained, i.e., the $\Lambda$CDM model is still nicely compatible with current observations.

We probe the cosmic acceleration by using the recently released SNLS3 sample of 472 type Ia supernovae. Combining this type Ia supernovae dataset with the cosmic microwave background anisotropy data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7-yr observations, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, and the Hubble constant measurement from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope, we measure the dark energy equation of state $w$ and the deceleration parameter $q$ as functions of redshift by using the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder parametrization. Our result is consistent with a cosmological constant at 1$\sigma$ confidence level, without evidence for the recent slowing down of the cosmic acceleration. Furthermore, we consider three binned parametrizations ($w$ is piecewise constant in redshift $z$) based on different binning methods. The similar results are obtained, i.e., the $\Lambda$CDM model is still nicely compatible with current observations.

We probe the cosmic acceleration by using the recently released SNLS3 sample of 472 type Ia supernovae. Combining this type Ia supernovae dataset with the cosmic microwave background anisotropy data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7-yr observations, the baryon acoustic oscillation results from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data release 7, and the Hubble constant measurement from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope, we measure the dark energy equation of state $w$ and the deceleration parameter $q$ as functions of redshift by using the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder parametrization. Our result is consistent with a cosmological constant at 1$\sigma$ confidence level, without evidence for the recent slowing down of the cosmic acceleration. Furthermore, we consider three binned parametrizations ($w$ is piecewise constant in redshift $z$) based on different binning methods. The similar results are obtained, i.e., the $\Lambda$CDM model is still nicely compatible with current observations.

Knowledge of the mass function in open clusters constitutes one way to constrain the formation of low-mass stars and brown dwarfs as does the knowledge of the frequency of multiple systems and the properties of disks. The aim of the project is to determine the shape of the mass function in the low-mass and substellar regimes in the pre-main sequence (27 Myr) cluster IC4665, which is located at 350 pc from the Sun. We have cross-matched the near-infrared photometric data from the Eighth Data Release of the UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey (UKIDSS) Galactic Clusters Survey with previous optical data obtained with the Canada-France-Hawaii wide-field camera to improve the determination of the luminosity and mass functions in the low-mass and substellar regimes. The availability of i and z photometry taken with the CFH12K camera on the Canada France Hawaii Telescope added strong constraints to the UKIDSS photometric selection in this cluster, which is located in a dense region of our Galaxy. We have derived the luminosity and mass functions of the cluster down to J=18.5 mag, corresponding to masses of ~0.025 Msun at the distance and age of IC4665 according to theoretical models. In addition, we have extracted new candidate members down to ~20 Jupiter masses in a previously unstudied region of the cluster. We have derived the mass function over the 0.6-0.04 Msun mass range and found that it is best represented by a log-normal function with a peak at 0.25-0.16 Msun, consistent with the determination in the Pleiades.

Using observations obtained with the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on board the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), we have studied the properties of the stellar populations in the central regions of 30 Dor, in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The observations clearly reveal the presence of considerable differential extinction across the field. We characterise and quantify this effect using young massive main sequence stars to derive a statistical reddening correction for most objects in the field. We then search for pre-main sequence (PMS) stars by looking for objects with a strong (> 4 sigma) Halpha excess emission and find about 1150 of them over the entire field. Comparison of their location in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram with theoretical PMS evolutionary tracks for the appropriate metallicity reveals that about one third of these objects are younger than ~4Myr, compatible with the age of the massive stars in the central ionising cluster R136, whereas the rest have ages up to ~30Myr, with a median age of ~12Myr. This indicates that star formation has proceeded over an extended period of time, although we cannot discriminate between an extended episode and a series of short and frequent bursts that are not resolved in time. While the younger PMS population preferentially occupies the central regions of the cluster, older PMS objects are more uniformly distributed across the field and are remarkably few at the very centre of the cluster. We attribute this latter effect to photoevaporation of the older circumstellar discs caused by the massive ionising members of R136.

Using multi-wavelength imaging from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope we study the stellar cluster populations of two adjacent fields in the nearby face-on spiral galaxy, M83. The observations cover the galactic centre and reach out to ~6 kpc, thereby spanning a large range of environmental conditions, ideal for testing empirical laws of cluster disruption. The clusters are selected by visual inspection to be centrally concentrated, symmetric, and resolved on the images. We find that a large fraction of objects detected by automated algorithms (e.g. SExtractor or Daofind) are not clusters, but rather are associations. These are likely to disperse into the field on timescales of tens of Myr due to their lower stellar densities and not due to gas expulsion (i.e. they were never gravitationally bound). We split the sample into two discrete fields (inner and outer regions of the galaxy) and search for evidence of environmentally dependent cluster disruption. Colour-colour diagrams of the clusters, when compared to simple stellar population models, already indicate that a much larger fraction of the clusters in the outer field are older by tens of Myr than in the inner field. This impression is quantified by estimating each cluster’s properties (age, mass, and extinction) and comparing the age/mass distributions between the two fields. Our results are inconsistent with “universal” age and mass distributions of clusters, and instead show that the ambient environment strongly affects the observed populations.

Stephan’s Quintet (SQ) is a compact group of galaxies that exhibits numerous signs of interactions between its members. Using high resolution images of SQ in B438, V606, and I814 bands from the Early Release Science project obtained with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope, we identify 496 star cluster candidates (SCCs), located throughout the galaxies themselves as well as in intergalactic regions. Our photometry goes \sim2 mag deeper and covers an additional three regions, the Old Tail, NGC 7317, and the Southern Debris Region, compared to previous work. Through comparison of the B438 – V606 and V606 – I814 colors of the star cluster candidates with simple stellar population synthesis models we are able to constrain cluster ages. In particular, the most massive galaxy of SQ, NGC 7319, exhibits continuous star formation throughout its history, although at a lower rate over the past few tens of Myr. NGC 7318 A/B and the Northern Star Burst region both show ongoing active star formation; there are a number of star clusters that are younger than 10 Myr. NGC 7318 A/B also features a peculiar gap in the color distribution of the star clusters that can be used to date the onset of the recent burst. The majority of the SCCs detected in the Young Tail were formed 150-200 Myr ago whereas the tight distribution of star cluster colors in the Old Tail, allow us to constrain its age of formation to \sim400 Myr ago. The star clusters in the Southern Debris region are seemingly divided into two groups with ages of 50 and \sim500 Myr and virtually all of the SCCs detected in NGC 7317 are over 2 Gyr old. Based on these ages, we estimate time intervals for the interactions between SQ members that triggered the massive star cluster formation.

This paper describes the Hubble Space Telescope imaging data products and data reduction procedures for the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). This survey is designed to document the evolution of galaxies and black holes at $z\sim1.5-8$, and to study Type Ia SNe beyond $z>1.5$. Five premier multi-wavelength sky regions are selected, each with extensive multiwavelength observations. The primary CANDELS data consist of imaging obtained in the Wide Field Camera 3 / infrared channel (WFC3/IR) and UVIS channel, along with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). The CANDELS/Deep survey covers \sim125 square arcminutes within GOODS-N and GOODS-S, while the remainder consists of the CANDELS/Wide survey, achieving a total of \sim800 square arcminutes across GOODS and three additional fields (EGS, COSMOS, and UDS). We summarize the observational aspects of the survey as motivated by the scientific goals and present a detailed description of the data reduction procedures and products from the survey. Our data reduction methods utilize the most up to date calibration files and image combination procedures. We have paid special attention to correcting a range of instrumental effects, including CTE degradation for ACS, removal of electronic bias-striping present in ACS data after SM4, and persistence effects and other artifacts in WFC3/IR. For each field, we release mosaics for individual epochs and eventual mosaics containing data from all epochs combined, to facilitate photometric variability studies and the deepest possible photometry. A more detailed overview of the science goals and observational design of the survey are presented in a companion paper.

This paper describes the Hubble Space Telescope imaging data products and data reduction procedures for the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). This survey is designed to document the evolution of galaxies and black holes at $z\sim1.5-8$, and to study Type Ia SNe beyond $z>1.5$. Five premier multi-wavelength sky regions are selected, each with extensive multiwavelength observations. The primary CANDELS data consist of imaging obtained in the Wide Field Camera 3 / infrared channel (WFC3/IR) and UVIS channel, along with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). The CANDELS/Deep survey covers \sim125 square arcminutes within GOODS-N and GOODS-S, while the remainder consists of the CANDELS/Wide survey, achieving a total of \sim800 square arcminutes across GOODS and three additional fields (EGS, COSMOS, and UDS). We summarize the observational aspects of the survey as motivated by the scientific goals and present a detailed description of the data reduction procedures and products from the survey. Our data reduction methods utilize the most up to date calibration files and image combination procedures. We have paid special attention to correcting a range of instrumental effects, including CTE degradation for ACS, removal of electronic bias-striping present in ACS data after SM4, and persistence effects and other artifacts in WFC3/IR. For each field, we release mosaics for individual epochs and eventual mosaics containing data from all epochs combined, to facilitate photometric variability studies and the deepest possible photometry. A companion paper (Grogin et al. 2011) presents a more detailed overview of the science goals and observational design of the survey.

We present a sample of 17 newly discovered ultracool dwarf candidates later than ~M8, drawn from 231.90 arcmin2 of {\it Hubble Space Telescope} Wide Field Camera 3 infrared imaging. By comparing the observed number counts for 17.5<J_125<25.5 AB mag to an exponential disk model, we estimate a vertical scale height of z_scl=290 +- 25 (random) +- 30 (systematic) pc for a binarity fraction of f_b=0. While our estimate is roughly consistent with published results, we suggest that the differences can be attributed to sample properties, with the present sample containing far more substellar objects than previous work. We predict the object counts should peak at J_{125}~24 AB mag due to the exponentially-declining number density at the edge of the disc. We conclude by arguing that trend in scale height with spectral type may breakdown for brown dwarfs since they do not settle onto the main sequence.

We present a sample of 17 newly discovered ultracool dwarf candidates later than ~M8, drawn from 231.90 arcmin2 of Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 infrared imaging. By comparing the observed number counts for 17.5<J_1252 mag brighter than the 50% completeness survey depth, suggesting the peak is due to a declining number density at the edge of the disk, not the survey incompleteness.

We report the discovery of seven strongly lensed Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~7 detected in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) imaging of Abell 1703. The brightest candidate, called A1703-zD1, has an observed (lensed) magnitude of 24.0 AB (26 sigma) in the WFC3/IR F160W band, making it 0.2 magnitudes brighter than the z_850-dropout candidate recently reported behind the Bullet Cluster and 0.7 magnitudes brighter than the previously brightest known z~7.6 galaxy, A1689-zD1. With a cluster magnification of ~9, this source has an intrinsic magnitude of H_160 = 26.4 AB, a strong z_850 – J_125 break of 1.7 magnitudes, and a photometric redshift of z~6.7. Additionally, we find six other bright LBG candidates with H_160 band magnitudes of 24.9-26.4, photometric redshifts z~6.4 – 8.8, and magnifications mu~3-40. Stellar population fits to the ACS, WFC3/IR, and \Spitzer/IRAC data for A1703-zD1 and A1703-zD4 yield stellar masses (0.7 – 3.0) x 10^{9} M_sun, stellar ages 5-180 Myr, and star-formation rates ~7.8 M_sun/yr, and low reddening with A_V <= 0.7. The source-plane reconstruction of the exceptionally bright candidate A1703-zD1 exhibits an extended structure, spanning ~4 kpc in the z~6.7 source plane, and shows three resolved star-forming knots of radius r~0.4 kpc.

We report the discovery of eight strongly lensed Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~7 detected in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) imaging of Abell 1703. The brightest candidate, called A1703-zD1, has an observed (lensed) magnitude of 24.0 AB (26 sigma) in the WFC3/IR F160W band, making it 0.2 magnitudes brighter than the z_850-band dropout candidate recently found behind the Bullet Cluster and 0.7 magnitudes brighter than the previously brightest known z~7.5 galaxy, A1689-zD1. With a cluster magnification of ~9.0, this source has an intrinsic magnitude of H_160 = 26.4 AB, a strong z_850 – J_125 break of 1.7 magnitudes, and a photometric redshift of z~6.7. Additionally, we find seven other bright LBG candidates with H_160-band magnitudes of 24.9-26.4, photometric redshifts z~6.4 – 8.8, and magnifications mu~3-40. Stellar population fits to the ACS, WFC3/IR, and \Spitzer/IRAC data for A1703-zD1 and A1703-zD4 yield stellar masses (0.7 – 3.0) x 10^{9} M_sun, stellar ages 5-180 Myr, and star-formation rates ~7.8 M_sun/yr, and low reddening with A_V <= 0.8. The source-plane reconstruction of the exceptionally bright candidate A1703-zD1 exhibits an extended structure, spanning ~4 kpc in the z~6.7 source plane, and shows three resolved star-forming knots of radius r~0.4 kpc.

We report the discovery of eight strongly lensed Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~7 detected in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) imaging of Abell 1703. The brightest candidate, called A1703-zD1, has an observed (lensed) magnitude of 24.0 AB (26 sigma) in the WFC3/IR F160W band, making it 0.2 magnitudes brighter than the z_850-band dropout recently found behind the Bullet Cluster and 0.7 magnitudes brighter than the previously brightest known z~7.5 galaxy, A1689-zD1. With a cluster magnification of 9.0, this source has an intrinsic magnitude of H_160 = 26.4 AB, a strong J_125 – H_160 break of 1.7 magnitudes, and a photometric redshift of z~6.7. Additionally, we find seven other bright LBG candidates with H_160-band magnitudes of 24.9-26.4, photometric redshifts z~6.4 – 8.8, and magnifications mu~3-40. Stellar population fits to the ACS, WFC3/IR, and \Spitzer/IRAC data for A1703-zD1 and A1703-zD4 yield stellar masses (0.7 – 3.0) x 10^{9} M_sun, stellar ages 5-180 Myr, and star-formation rates ~7.8 M_sun/yr, and low reddening with A_V <= 0.8. The source-plane reconstruction of the exceptionally bright candidate A1703-zD1 exhibits an extended structure, spanning ~4 kpc in the z~6.7 source plane, and shows three resolved star-forming knots of radius r~0.4 kpc.

We present the SVOM (Space-based multi-band astronomical Variable Objects Monitor) mission that the Chinese National Space Agency and the French Space Agency have decided to jointly implement. SVOM has been designed to detect all known types of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), to provide fast and reliable GRB positions, to measure the broadband spectral shape and temporal properties of the GRB prompt emission, and to quickly identify the optical/near-infrared afterglows of detected GRBs, including high-redshift ones. Scheduled to be in orbit in the second half of the present decade, the SVOM satellite will carry a very innovative scientific payload combining for the first time a wide field X- and gamma-ray coded mask imager for GRB real-time localizations to few arcmin, a non-imaging gamma-ray monitor, and two narrow-field instruments for the study of the GRB early afterglow emission in the X-ray and visible bands. The SVOM payload is complemented by ground-based instruments including a wide-field camera to catch the GRB prompt emission in the visible band and two robotic telescopes to measure the photometric properties of the early afterglow. A particular attention is paid to the GRB follow-up in facilitating the observation of the SVOM detected GRB by the largest ground based telescopes.

We present deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) optical observations obtained as part of the ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury (ANGST) as well as early release Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) ultra-violet and infrared observations of the nearby dwarf starbursting galaxy NGC 4214. Our data provide a detailed example of how covering such a broad range in wavelength provides a powerful tool for constraining the physical properties of stellar populations. The deepest data reach the ancient red clump at M_F814W -0.2. All of the optical data reach the main sequence turnoff for stars younger than ~300 Myr, and the blue He burning sequence for stars younger than 500 Myr. The full CMD-fitting analysis shows that all three fields in our data set are consistent with ~75% of the stellar mass being older than 8 Gyr, in spite of showing a wide range in star formation rates at the present day. Thus, our results suggest that the scale length of NGC 4214 has remained relatively constant for many Gyr. As previously noted by others, we also find the galaxy has recently ramped up production, consistent with its bright UV luminosity and its population of UV-bright massive stars. In the central field we find UV point sources with F336W magnitudes as bright as -9.9. These are as bright as stars with masses of at least 52-56 M_sun and ages near 4 Myr in stellar evolution models. Assuming a standard IMF, our CMD is well-fitted by an increase in star formation rate beginning 100 Myr ago. The stellar populations of this late-type dwarf are compared with those of NGC 404, an early-type dwarf that is also the most massive galaxy in its local environment. The late-type dwarf appears to have a similar high fraction of ancient stars, suggesting that these dominant galaxies may form at early epochs even if they have low total mass and very different present-day morphologies.

We use the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope to determine the Hubble constant (H0) from optical and infrared observations of over 600 Cepheid variables in the host galaxies of 8 recent Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia), providing the calibration for a mag-z relation of 253 SNe Ia. Increased precision over past measurements comes from: (1) more than doubling the number of infrared observations of Cepheids in nearby SN hosts; (2) increasing the sample of ideal SN Ia calibrators from six to eight; (3) increasing by 20% the number of Cepheids with infrared observations in the megamaser host NGC 4258; (4) reducing the difference in the mean metallicity of the Cepheid comparison samples from \Delta log [O/H] = 0.08 to 0.05; and (5) calibrating all optical Cepheid colors with one camera, WFC3, to remove cross-instrument zero-point errors. Uncertainty in H0 from beyond the 1st rung of the distance ladder is reduced from 3.5% to 2.3%. The measurement of H0 via the geometric distance to NGC 4258 is 74.8 \pm 3.1 km s- 1 Mpc-1, a 4.1% measurement including systematics. Better precision independent of NGC 4258 comes from two alternative Cepheid absolute calibrations: (1) 13 Milky Way Cepheids with parallaxes and (2) 92 Cepheids in the Large Magellanic Cloud with multiple eclipsing binary distances, yielding 74.4 \pm 2.5 km s- 1 Mpc-1, a 3.4% uncertainty with systematics. Our best estimate uses all three calibrations but a larger uncertainty afforded from any two: H0 = 73.8 \pm 2.4 km s- 1 Mpc-1 including systematics, a 3.3% uncertainty. The improvement in H0, combined with WMAP7yr data, results in a constraint on the EOS parameter of dark energy of w = -1.08 \pm 0.10 and Neff = 4.2 \pm 0.7 for the number of relativistic species in the early universe. It also rules out the best-fitting gigaparsec-scale void models, posited as an alternative to dark energy. (abridged)

We present an improved geometric-distortion solution for the Hubble Space Telescope UVIS channel of Wide Field Camera 3 for ten broad-band filters. The solution is made up of three parts: (1) a 3rd-order polynomial to deal with the general optical distortion, (2) a table of residuals that accounts for both chip-related anomalies and fine-structure introduced by the filter, and (3) a linear transformation to put the two chips into a convenient master frame. The final correction is better than 0.008 pixel (~0.3 mas) in each coordinate. We provide the solution in two different forms: a FORTRAN subroutine and a set of fits files, one for each filter/chip/coordinate.

We investigate the ionization structure of the nebular gas in M83 using the line diagnostic diagram, [O III](5007 \degA)/H{\beta} vs. [S II](6716 \deg A+6731 \deg A)/H{\alpha} with the newly available narrowband images from the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). We produce the diagnostic diagram on a pixel-by-pixel (0.2″ x 0.2″) basis and compare it with several photo- and shock-ionization models. For the photo-ionized gas, we observe a gradual increase of the log([O III]/H{\beta}) ratios from the center to the spiral arm, consistent with the metallicity gradient, as the H II regions go from super solar abundance to roughly solar abundance from the center out. Using the diagnostic diagram, we separate the photo-ionized from the shock-ionized component of the gas. We find that the shock-ionized H{\alpha} emission ranges from ~2% to about 15-33% of the total, depending on the separation criteria used. An interesting feature in the diagnostic diagram is an horizontal distribution around log([O III]/H{\beta}) ~ 0. This feature is well fit by a shock-ionization model with 2.0 Z\odot metallicity and shock velocities in the range of 250 km/s to 350 km/s. A low velocity shock component, < 200 km/s, is also detected, and is spatially located at the boundary between the outer ring and the spiral arm. The low velocity shock component can be due to : 1) supernova remnants located nearby, 2) dynamical interaction between the outer ring and the spiral arm, 3) abnormal line ratios from extreme local dust extinction. The current data do not enable us to distinguish among those three possible interpretations. Our main conclusion is that, even at the HST resolution, the shocked gas represents a small fraction of the total ionized gas emission at less than 33% of the total. However, it accounts for virtually all of the mechanical energy produced by the central starburst in M83.

We use imaging obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 to search for z_850 dropouts at z~7 and J_110 dropouts at z~9 lensed by the Bullet Cluster. In total we find 10 z_850 dropouts in our 8.27 arcmin^2 field. Using magnification maps from a combined weak and strong lensing mass reconstruction of the Bullet Cluster and correcting for estimated completeness levels, we calculate the surface density and luminosity function of our z_850 dropouts as a function of intrinsic (accounting for magnification) magnitude. We find results consistent with published blank field surveys, despite using much shallower data, and demonstrate the effectiveness of cluster surveys in the search for z~7 galaxies.

We use imaging obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 to search for z_850 dropouts at z~7 and J_110 dropouts at z~9 lensed by the Bullet Cluster. In total we find 10 z_850 dropouts in our 8.27 arcmin^2 field. We also detect two objects that are possibly multiple images of the same z~7 z_850 dropout galaxy. Additional observations are needed to confirm the high redshift nature of the brighter of the two images. Given the magnification provided by the Bullet Cluster (factor of ~8) this object has an observed H_160 magnitude of 24.2, thus spectroscopic followup may in fact be possible. We also find 2 objects of interest sufficiently red in J_110-H_160 colors to be J_110 dropouts, but that are rejected as contaminants given detection in the Ks-band of the High Acuity, Wide field K-band Imaging camera and the corresponding H_160-Ks colors. Using magnification maps from a combined weak and strong lensing mass reconstruction of the Bullet Cluster and correcting for estimated completeness levels, we calculate the surface density and luminosity function of our z_850 dropouts as a function of intrinsic (accounting for magnification) magnitude. We find results consistent with published blank field surveys, despite using much shallower data, and demonstrate the effectiveness of cluster surveys in the search for z~7 galaxies.

We use imaging obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 to search for z_850 dropouts at z~7 and J_110 dropouts at z~9 lensed by the Bullet Cluster. In total we find 10 z_850 dropouts in our 8.27 arcmin^2 field. We also detect two objects that are possibly multiple images of the same z~7 z_850 dropout galaxy. Additional observations are needed to confirm the high redshift nature of the brighter of the two images. Given the magnification provided by the Bullet Cluster (factor of ~8) this object has an observed H_160 magnitude of 24.2, thus spectroscopic followup may in fact be possible. We also find 2 objects of interest sufficiently red in J_110-H_160 colors to be J_110 dropouts, but that are rejected as contaminants given detection in the Ks-band of the High Acuity, Wide field K-band Imaging camera and the corresponding H_160-Ks colors. Using magnification maps from a combined weak and strong lensing mass reconstruction of the Bullet Cluster and correcting for estimated completeness levels, we calculate the surface density and luminosity function of our z_850 dropouts as a function of intrinsic (accounting for magnification) magnitude. We find results consistent with published blank field surveys, despite using much shallower data, and demonstrate the effectiveness of cluster surveys in the search for z~7 galaxies.

We use near-infrared data obtained with the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope to identify objects having the colors of brown dwarfs (BDs) in the field of the massive galactic cluster NGC 3603. These are identified through use of a combination of narrow and medium band filters spanning the J and H bands, and which are particularly sensitive to the presence of the 1.3-1.5{\mu}m H2O molecular band – unique to BDs. We provide a calibration of the relationship between effective temperature and color for both field stars and for BDs. This photometric method provides effective temperatures for BDs to an accuracy of {\pm}350K relative to spectroscopic techniques. This accuracy is shown to be not significantly affected by either stellar surface gravity or uncertainties in the interstellar extinction. We identify nine objects having effective temperature between 1700 and 2200 K, typical of BDs, observed J-band magnitudes in the range 19.5-21.5, and that are strongly clustered towards the luminous core of NGC 3603. However, if these are located at the distance of the cluster, they are far too luminous to be normal BDs. We argue that it is unlikely that these objects are either artifacts of our dataset, normal field BDs/M-type giants or extra-galactic contaminants and, therefore, might represent a new class of stars having the effective temperatures of BDs but with luminosities of more massive stars. We explore the interesting scenario in which these objects would be normal stars that have recently tidally ingested a Hot Jupiter, the remnants of which are providing a short-lived extended photosphere to the central star. In this case, we would expect them to show the signature of fast rotation.

We use near-infrared data obtained with the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope to identify objects having the colors of brown dwarfs (BDs) in the field of the massive galactic cluster NGC 3603. These are identified through use of a combination of narrow and medium band filters spanning the J and H bands, and which are particularly sensitive to the presence of the 1.3-1.5{\mu}m H2O molecular band – unique to BDs. We provide a calibration of the relationship between effective temperature and color for both field stars and for BDs. This photometric method provides effective temperatures for BDs to an accuracy of {\pm}350K relative to spectroscopic techniques. This accuracy is shown to be not significantly affected by either stellar surface gravity or uncertainties in the interstellar extinction. We identify nine objects having effective temperature between 1700 and 2200 K, typical of BDs, observed J-band magnitudes in the range 19.5-21.5, and that are strongly clustered towards the luminous core of NGC 3603. However, if these are located at the distance of the cluster, they are far too luminous to be normal BDs. We argue that it is unlikely that these objects are either artifacts of our dataset, normal field BDs/M-type giants or extra-galactic contaminants and, therefore, might represent a new class of stars having the effective temperatures of BDs but with luminosities of more massive stars. We explore the interesting scenario in which these objects would be normal stars that have recently tidally ingested a Hot Jupiter, the remnants of which are providing a short-lived extended photosphere to the central star. In this case, we would expect them to show the signature of fast rotation.

We use near-infrared data obtained with the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope to identify objects having the colors of brown dwarfs (BDs) in the field of the massive galactic cluster NGC 3603. These are identified through use of a combination of narrow and medium band filters spanning the J and H bands, and which are particularly sensitive to the presence of the 1.3-1.5{\mu}m H2O molecular band – unique to BDs. We provide a calibration of the relationship between effective temperature and color for both field stars and for BDs. This photometric method provides effective temperatures for BDs to an accuracy of {\pm}350K relative to spectroscopic techniques. This accuracy is shown to be not significantly affected by either stellar surface gravity or uncertainties in the interstellar extinction. We identify nine objects having effective temperature between 1700 and 2200 K, typical of BDs, observed J-band magnitudes in the range 19.5-21.5, and that are strongly clustered towards the luminous core of NGC 3603. However, if these are located at the distance of the cluster, they are far too luminous to be normal BDs. We argue that it is unlikely that these objects are either artifacts of our dataset, normal field BDs/M-type giants or extra-galactic contaminants and, therefore, might represent a new class of stars having the effective temperatures of BDs but with luminosities of more massive stars. We explore the interesting scenario in which these objects would be normal stars that have recently tidally ingested a Hot Jupiter, the remnants of which are providing a short-lived extended photosphere to the central star. In this case, we would expect them to show the signature of fast rotation.

Photometric and spectroscopic observations of the galaxy population of the galaxy cluster Abell 1367 have been obtained, over a field of 34 by 90 arcmin, covering the cluster centre out to a radius of about 2.2 Mpc. U, B and R broad-band and H alpha narrow-band imaging observations were carried out using the Wide Field Camera (WFC) on the 2.5m INT. J and K near-infrared imaging was obtained using the Wide Field Camera (WFCAM) on the 3.8 m UKIRT, covering a somewhat smaller field of 0.75 square degrees on the cluster centre. The spectroscopic observations were carried out using a multifibre spectrograph (WYFFOS) on the 4.2 m WHT, over the same field as the optical imaging observations. Our photometric data give optical and near-infrared magnitudes for 303 galaxies in our survey regions, down to stated diameter and B-band magnitude limits, determined within R24 isophotal diameters. Our spectroscopic data of 328 objects provide 84 galaxies with detections of emission and/or absorption lines. Combining these with published spectroscopic data gives 126 galaxies within our sample for which recession velocities are known. Of these, 72 galaxies are confirmed as cluster members of Abell 1367, 11 of which are identified in this study. (abridged)

(Abridged) We present a spatially-resolved near-UV/optical study of NGC 4150, using the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on board the Hubble Space Telescope. Previous studies of this early-type galaxy (ETG) indicate that it has a large reservoir of molecular gas, exhibits a kinematically decoupled core (likely indication of recent merging) and strong, central H_B absorption (indicative of young stars). The core of NGC 4150 shows ubiquitous near-UV emission and remarkable dusty substructure. Our analysis shows this galaxy to lie in the near-UV green valley, and its pixel-by-pixel photometry exhibits a narrow range of near-UV/optical colours that are similar to those of nearby E+A (post-starburst) galaxies. We parametrise the properties of the recent star formation (age, mass fraction, metallicity and internal dust content) in the NGC 4150 pixels by comparing the observed near-UV/optical photometry to stellar models. The typical age of the recent star formation (RSF) is around 0.9 Gyrs, consistent with the similarity of the near-UV colours to post-starburst systems, while the morphological structure of the young component supports the proposed merger scenario. The RSF metallicity, representative of the metallicity of the gas fuelling star formation, is around 0.3 – 0.5 Zsun. Assuming that this galaxy is a merger and that the gas is sourced mainly from the infalling companion, these metallicities plausibly indicate the gas-phase metallicity (GPM) of the accreted satellite. Comparison to the local mass-GPM relation suggests (crudely) that the mass of the accreted system is around 3×10^8 Msun, making NGC 4150 a 1:20 minor merger. A summation of the pixel RSF mass fractions indicates that the RSF contributes about 2-3 percent of the stellar mass. This work reaffirms our hypothesis that minor mergers play a significant role in the evolution of ETGs at late epochs.

We present the first results on the search for very bright (M_AB -21) galaxies at redshift z~8 from the Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) survey. BoRG is a Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 pure-parallel survey that is obtaining images on random lines of sight at high Galactic latitudes in four filters (F606W, F098M, F125W, F160W), with integration times optimized to identify galaxies at z>7.5 as F098M-dropouts. We discuss here results from a search area of approximately 130 arcmin^2 over 23 BoRG fields, complemented by six other pure-parallel WFC3 fields with similar filters. This new search area is more than two times wider than previous WFC3 observations at z~8. We identify four F098M-dropout candidates with high statistical confidence (detected at greater than 8sigma confidence in F125W). These sources are among the brightest candidates currently known at z~8 and approximately ten times brighter than the z=8.56 galaxy UDFy-38135539. They thus represent ideal targets for spectroscopic followup observations and could potentially lead to a redshift record, as our color selection includes objects up to z~9. However, the expected contamination rate of our sample is about 30% higher than typical searches for dropout galaxies in legacy fields, such as the GOODS and HUDF, where deeper data and additional optical filters are available to reject contaminants.

We present the first results on the search for very bright (M_AB~-21) z~8 galaxies from the Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) survey. BoRG is a Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 pure-parallel survey that is obtaining images on random lines of sight at high Galactic latitudes in four filters (F606W, F098M, F125W, F160W), with integration times optimized to identify galaxies at z>7.5 as F098M-dropouts. We discuss here results from a search area of ~130 arcmin^2 over 23 BoRG fields, complemented by 6 other pure-parallel WFC3 fields with similar filters. This new search area is >2X wider compared to previous WFC3 observations at z~8. We identify four F098M-dropout candidates with high statistical confidence (detected at >8 sigma in F125W). These sources are among the brightest candidates currently known at z~8 and ~10x brighter than the z=8.56 galaxy UDFy-38135539. They thus represent ideal targets for spectroscopic followup observations and could potentially lead to a redshift record as our color selection includes objects up to z~ 9. However, the expected contamination rate of our sample is ~30% higher than typical searches for dropout galaxies in legacy fields, such as the GOODS and HUDF, where more extended wavelength coverage is available both in the optical and in the infrared.

We present new UV-to-IR stellar photometry of four low-extinction windows in the Galactic bulge, obtained with the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Using our five bandpasses, we have defined reddening-free photometric indices sensitive to stellar effective temperature and metallicity. We find that the bulge populations resemble those formed via classical dissipative collapse: each field is dominated by an old (~10 Gyr) population exhibiting a wide metallicity range (-1.5 < [Fe/H] < 0.5). We detect a metallicity gradient in the bulge population, with the fraction of stars at super-solar metallicities dropping from 41% to 35% over distances from the Galactic center ranging from 0.3 to 1.2 kpc. One field includes candidate exoplanet hosts discovered in the SWEEPS HST transit survey. Our measurements for 11 of these hosts demonstrate that exoplanets in the distinct bulge environment are preferentially found around high-metallicity stars, as in the solar neighborhood, supporting the view that planets form more readily in metal-rich environments.

We report the first results from the Hubble Infrared Pure Parallel Imaging Extragalactic Survey, which utilizes the pure parallel orbits of the Hubble Space Telescope to do deep imaging along a large number of random sightlines. To date, our analysis includes 26 widely separated fields observed by the Wide Field Camera 3, which amounts to 122.8 sq.arcmin in total area. We have found three bright Y098-dropouts, which are candidate galaxies at z >~ 7.4. One of these objects shows an indication of peculiar variability and its nature is uncertain. The other two objects are among the brightest candidate galaxies at these redshifts known to date L>2L*. Such very luminous objects could be the progenitors of the high-mass Lyman break galaxis (LBGs) observed at lower redshifts (up to z~5). While our sample is still limited in size, it is much less subject to the uncertainty caused by “cosmic variance” than other samples because it is derived using fields along many random sightlines. We find that the existence of the brightest candidate at z~7.4 is not well explained by the current luminosity function (LF) estimates at z~8. However, its inferred surface density could be explained by the prediction from the LFs at z~7 if it belongs to the high-redshift tail of the galaxy population at z~7.

We report the first results from the Hubble Infrared Pure Parallel Imaging Extragalactic Survey, which utilizes the pure parallel orbits of the Hubble Space Telescope to do deep imaging along a large number of random sightlines. To date, our analysis includes 26 widely separated fields observed by the Wide Field Camera 3, which amounts to 122.8 sq. arcmin in total area. We have found three bright Y098-dropouts, which are candidate galaxies at z >~ 7.4. One of these objects shows a peculiar indication of variability and its nature is uncertain. The other two objects are among the brightest candidate galaxies at these redshifts known to date (L>2L*). Such very luminous objects could be the progenitors of the high-mass LBGs observed at lower redshifts. While our sample is still limited in size, it is much less subject to the uncertainty caused by “cosmic variance” than other samples because it is derived using fields along many random sightlines. We find that the existence of the brightest candidate at z~7.4 is not well explained by the current luminosity function estimates at z~8. However, its inferred surface density could be explained by the prediction from the luminosity functions at z~7 if it belongs to the high-redshift tail of the galaxy population at z~7.

A confluence of scientific, financial, and political factors imply that launching two simpler, more narrowly defined dark-energy/microlensing satellites will lead to faster, cheaper, better (and more secure) science than the present EUCLID and WFIRST designs. The two satellites, one led by ESA and the other by NASA, would be explicitly designed to perform complementary functions of a single, dual-satellite dark-energy/microlensing “mission”. One would be a purely optical wide-field camera, with large format and small pixels, optimized for weak-lensing, which because of its simple design, could be launched by ESA on relatively short timescales. The second would be a purely infrared satellite with marginally-sampled or under-sampled pixels, launched by NASA. Because of budget constraints, this would be launched several years later. The two would complement one another in 3 dark energy experiments (weak lensing, baryon oscillations, supernovae) and also in microlensing planet searches. Signed international agreements would guarantee the later NASA launch, and on this basis equal access of both US and European scientists to both data sets.

In this proceeding we present the results from a study of very high-redshift galaxies with the newly commissioned Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. With the deepest near-infrared data ever taken, we discovered 31 galaxies at 6.3 < z < 8.6. The rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) colors of these galaxies are extremely blue, showing significant (> 4 sigma) evolution from z ~ 3, over only 1 Gyr of cosmic time. While we cannot yet diagnose the exact cause of the bluer colors, it appears a low dust content is the primary factor. The stellar masses of these galaxies are less than comparably selected galaxies at 3 < z < 6, highlighting evolution in the stellar mass of characteristic (L*) galaxies with redshift. Lastly, the measured rest-UV luminosity density of galaxies in our sample seems sufficient to sustain reionization at z ~ 7 when we account for the likely contribution from galaxies below our magnitude limit.

We present the highest redshift detections of resolved Lyman alpha emission, using Hubble Space Telescope/ACS F658N narrowband-imaging data taken in parallel with the Wide Field Camera 3 Early Release Science program in the GOODS CDF-S. We detect Lyman alpha emission from three spectroscopically confirmed z = 4.4 Lyman alpha emitting galaxies (LAEs), more than doubling the sample of LAEs with resolved Lyman alpha emission. Comparing the light distribution between the rest-frame ultraviolet continuum and narrowband images, we investigate the escape of Lyman alpha photons at high redshift. While our data do not support a positional offset between the Lyman alpha and rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) continuum emission, the half-light radii in two out of the three galaxies are significantly larger in Lyman alpha than in the rest-frame UV continuum. This result is confirmed when comparing object sizes in a stack of all objects in both bands. Additionally, the narrowband flux detected with HST is significantly less than observed in similar filters from the ground. These results together imply that the Lyman alpha emission is not strictly confined to its indigenous star-forming regions. Rather, the Lyman alpha emission is more extended, with the missing HST flux likely existing in a diffuse outer halo. This suggests that the radiative transfer of Lyman alpha photons in high-redshift LAEs is complicated, with the interstellar-medium geometry and/or outflows playing a significant role in galaxies at these redshifts.

The newly installed Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope has been used to obtain multi-band images of the nearby spiral galaxy M83. These new observations are the deepest and highest resolution images ever taken of a grand-design spiral, particularly in the near ultraviolet, and allow us to better differentiate compact star clusters from individual stars and to measure the luminosities of even faint clusters in the U band. We find that the luminosity function for clusters outside of the very crowded starburst nucleus can be approximated by a power law, dN/dL \propto L^{alpha}, with alpha = -2.04 +/- 0.08, down to M_V ~ -5.5. We test the sensitivity of the luminosity function to different selection techniques, filters, binning, and aperture correction determinations, and find that none of these contribute significantly to uncertainties in alpha. We estimate ages and masses for the clusters by comparing their measured UBVI,Halpha colors with predictions from single stellar population models. The age distribution of the clusters can be approximated by a power-law, dN/dt propto t^{gamma}, with gamma=-0.9 +/- 0.2, for M > few x 10^3 Msun and t < 4×10^8 yr. This indicates that clusters are disrupted quickly, with ~80-90% disrupted each decade in age over this time. The mass function of clusters over the same M-t range is a power law, dN/dM propto M^{beta}, with beta=-1.94 +/- 0.16, and does not have bends or show curvature at either high or low masses. Therefore, we do not find evidence for a physical upper mass limit, M_C, or for the earlier disruption of lower mass clusters when compared with higher mass clusters, i.e. mass-dependent disruption. We briefly discuss these implications for the formation and disruption of the clusters.

We present results on the size evolution of passively evolving galaxies at 1<z<2 drawn from the Wide Field Camera 3 Early Release Science program. Our sample was constructed using an analog to the passive BzK selection criterion, which isolates galaxies with little or no on-going star formation at z>1.5. We identify 30 galaxies in ~40 square arcmin to H<25 mag. We supplement spectroscopic redshifts from the literature with photometric redshifts determined from the 15-band photometry from 0.22-8 micron. We determine effective radii from Sersic profile fits to the H-band image using an empirical PSF. We find that size evolution is a strong function of stellar mass, with the most massive (M* ~ 10^11 Msol) galaxies undergoing the most rapid evolution from z~2 to the present. Parameterizing the size evolution as (1+z)^{-alpha}, we find a tentative scaling between alpha and stellar mass of alpha ~ -1.8+1.4 log(M*/10^9 Msol). We briefly discuss the implications of this result for our understanding of the dynamical evolution of the red galaxies.

We used archival multi-band Hubble Space Telescope observations obtained with the Wide-Field Camera 3 in the UV-optical channel to present new important observational findings on the color-magnitude diagram (CMD) of the Galactic globular cluster omega Centauri. The ultraviolet WFC3 data have been coupled with available WFC/ACS optical-band data. The new CMDs, obtained from the combination of colors coming from eight different bands, disclose an even more complex stellar population than previously identified. This paper discusses the detailed morphology of the CMDs.

We present the WFC3 Infrared Spectroscopic Parallel (WISP) Survey. WISP is obtaining slitless, near-infrared grism spectroscopy of ~ 90 independent, high-latitude fields by observing in the pure parallel mode with Wide Field Camera-3 on the Hubble Space Telescope for a total of ~ 250 orbits. Spectra are obtained with the G102 (lambda=0.8-1.17 microns, R ~ 210) and G141 grisms (lambda=1.11-1.67 microns, R ~ 130), together with direct imaging in the J- and H-bands (F110W and F140W, respectively). In the present paper, we present the first results from 19 WISP fields, covering approximately 63 square arc minutes. For typical exposure times (~ 6400 sec in G102 and ~ 2700 sec in G141), we reach 5-sigma detection limits for emission lines of 5 x 10^(-17) ergs s^(-1) cm^(-2) for compact objects. Typical direct imaging 5sigma-limits are 26.8 and 25.0 magnitudes (AB) in F110W and F140W, respectively. Restricting ourselves to the lines measured with highest confidence, we present a list of 328 emission lines, in 229 objects, in a redshift range 0.3 < z < 3. The single-line emitters are likely to be a mix of Halpha and [OIII]5007,4959 A, with Halpha predominating. The overall surface density of high-confidence emission-line objects in our sample is approximately 4 per arcmin^(2).These first fields show high equivalent width sources, AGN, and post starburst galaxies. The median observed star formation rate of our Halpha selected sample is 4 Msol/year. At intermediate redshifts, we detect emission lines in galaxies as faint as H_140 ~ 25, or M_R < -19, and are sensitive to star formation rates down to less than 1 Msol/year. The slitless grisms on WFC3 provide a unique opportunity to study the spectral properties of galaxies much fainter than L* at the peak of the galaxy assembly epoch.

We present grism spectra of emission-line galaxies (ELGs) from 0.6-1.6 microns from the Wide Field Camera 3 on the Hubble Space Telescope. These new infrared grism data augment previous optical Advanced Camera for Surveys G800L 0.6-0.95 micron grism data in GOODS-South from the PEARS program, extending the wavelength covereage well past the G800L red cutoff. The ERS grism field was observed at a depth of 2 orbits per grism, yielding spectra of hundreds of faint objects, a subset of which are presented here. ELGs are studied via the Ha, [OIII], and [OII] emission lines detected in the redshift ranges 0.2<z<1.4, 1.2<z<2.2 and 2.0<z2.

We present grism spectra of emission–line galaxies (ELGs) from 0.6–1.6 microns from the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). These new infrared grism data augment previous optical Advanced Camera for Surveys G800L (0.6–0.95 micron) grism data in GOODS–South, extending the wavelength covereage well past the G800L red cutoff. The ERS grism field was observed at a depth of 2 orbits per grism, yielding spectra of hundreds of faint objects, a subset of which are presented here. ELGs are studied via the \Ha, \OIII, and \OII\ emission lines detected in the redshift ranges 0.2$\cle$z$\cle$1.6, 1.2$\cle$z$\cle$2.4 and 2.0$\cle$z$\cle$3.6 respectively in the G102 (0.8–1.1 microns; R$\sim$210) and G141 (1.1–1.6 microns; R$\sim$130) grisms. The higher spectral resolution afforded by the WFC3 grisms also reveals emission lines not detectable with the G800L grism (e.g., \SII\ and \SIII\ lines). From these relatively shallow observations, line luminosities, star–formation rates, and grism spectroscopic redshifts are determined for a total of 25 ELGs to m$_{AB(F098M)}$$\sim$25 mag. The faintest source in our sample—with a strong but unidentified emission–line—is m$_{AB(F098M)}$$=$26.9 mag. We also detect the expected trend of lower specific star formation rates for the highest mass galaxies in the sample, indicative of downsizing and discovered previously from large surveys. These results demonstrate the remarkable efficiency and capability of the WFC3 NIR grisms for measuring galaxy properties to faint magnitudes.

We describe the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) Early Release Science (ERS) observations in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) South field. The new WFC3 ERS data provide calibrated, drizzled mosaics in the UV filters F225W, F275W, and F336W, as well as in the near-IR filters F098M (Ys), F125W (J), and F160W (H) with 1-2 HST orbits per filter. Together with the existing HST Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) GOODS-South mosaics in the BViz filters, these panchromatic 10-band ERS data cover 40-50 square arcmin at 0.2-1.7 {\mu}m in wavelength at 0.07-0.15″ FWHM resolution and 0.090″ Multidrizzled pixels to depths of AB\simeq 26.0-27.0 mag (5-{\sigma}) for point sources, and AB\simeq 25.5-26.5 mag for compact galaxies. In this paper, we describe: a) the scientific rationale, and the data taking plus reduction procedures of the panchromatic 10-band ERS mosaics; b) the procedure of generating object catalogs across the 10 different ERS filters, and the specific star-galaxy separation techniques used; and c) the reliability and completeness of the object catalogs from the WFC3 ERS mosaics. The excellent 0.07-0.15″ FWHM resolution of HST/WFC3 and ACS makes star- galaxy separation straightforward over a factor of 10 in wavelength to AB\simeq 25-26 mag from the UV to the near-IR, respectively.

We describe the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) Early Release Science (ERS) observations in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) South field. The new WFC3 ERS data provide calibrated, drizzled mosaics in the UV filters F225W, F275W, and F336W, as well as in the near-IR filters F098M (Ys), F125W (J), and F160W (H) with 1-2 HST orbits per filter. Together with the existing HST Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) GOODS-South mosaics in the BViz filters, these panchromatic 10-band ERS data cover 40-50 square arcmin at 0.2-1.7 {\mu}m in wavelength at 0.07-0.15″ FWHM resolution and 0.090″ Multidrizzled pixels to depths of AB\simeq 26.0-27.0 mag (5-{\sigma}) for point sources, and AB\simeq 25.5-26.5 mag for compact galaxies. In this paper, we describe: a) the scientific rationale, and the data taking plus reduction procedures of the panchromatic 10-band ERS mosaics; b) the procedure of generating object catalogs across the 10 different ERS filters, and the specific star-galaxy separation techniques used; and c) the reliability and completeness of the object catalogs from the WFC3 ERS mosaics. The excellent 0.07-0.15″ FWHM resolution of HST/WFC3 and ACS makes star- galaxy separation straightforward over a factor of 10 in wavelength to AB\simeq 25-26 mag from the UV to the near-IR, respectively.

We describe the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) Early Release Science (ERS) observations in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) South field. The new WFC3 ERS data provide calibrated, drizzled mosaics in the mid-UV filters F225W, F275W, and F336W, as well as in the near-IR filters F098W (\Ys), F125W (J), and F160W (H) in 1-2 HST orbits per filter. Together with the existing HST Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) GOODS-South mosaics in the BVi’z’ filters, these panchromatic 10-band ERS data cover 40-50 square arcmin from from 0.2-1.7 \mum\ in wavelength at 0\arcspt 07-0\arcspt 15 FWHM resolution and 0\arcspt 090 multidrizzled pixels to depths of AB\cle 26.0-27.0 mag (5-sigma) for point sources, and AB\cle 25.5-26.5 mag for compact galaxies. In this paper, we describe: a) the scientific rationale, and the data taking plus reduction procedures of the panchromatic 10-band ERS mosaics; b) the procedure of generating object catalogs across the 10 different ERS filters, and the specific star-galaxy separation techniques used; and c) the reliability and completeness of the object catalogs from the WFC3 ERS mosaics. The excellent 0\arcspt 07-0\arcspt 15 FWHM resolution of HST/WFC3 and ACS makes star-galaxy separation rather straightforward over a factor of 10 in wavelength to AB\cle 25-26 mag from the UV to the near-IR, respectively.

We describe the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) Early Release Science (ERS) observations in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) South field. The new WFC3 ERS data provide calibrated, drizzled mosaics in the mid-UV filters F225W, F275W, and F336W, as well as in the near-IR filters F098W (\Ys), F125W (J), and F160W (H) in 1-2 HST orbits per filter. Together with the existing HST Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) GOODS-South mosaics in the BVi’z’ filters, these panchromatic 10-band ERS data cover 40-50 square arcmin from from 0.2-1.7 \mum\ in wavelength at 0\arcspt 07-0\arcspt 15 FWHM resolution and 0\arcspt 090 multidrizzled pixels to depths of AB\cle 26.0-27.0 mag (5-sigma) for point sources, and AB\cle 25.5-26.5 mag for compact galaxies. In this paper, we describe: a) the scientific rationale, and the data taking plus reduction procedures of the panchromatic 10-band ERS mosaics; b) the procedure of generating object catalogs across the 10 different ERS filters, and the specific star-galaxy separation techniques used; and c) the reliability and completeness of the object catalogs from the WFC3 ERS mosaics. The excellent 0\arcspt 07-0\arcspt 15 FWHM resolution of HST/WFC3 and ACS makes star-galaxy separation rather straightforward over a factor of 10 in wavelength to AB\cle 25-26 mag from the UV to the near-IR, respectively.

We combine new high sensitivity ultraviolet (UV) imaging from the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) with existing deep HST/Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) optical images from the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) program to identify UV-dropouts, which are Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~1-3. These new HST/WFC3 observations were taken over 50 sq.arcmin in the GOODS-South field as a part of the Early Release Science program. The uniqueness of these new UV data is that they are observed in 3 UV/optical (WFC3 UVIS) channel filters (F225W, F275W and F336W), which allows us to identify three different sets of UV-dropout samples. We apply Lyman break dropout selection criteria to identify F225W-, F275W- and F336W-dropouts, which are z~1.7, 2.1 and 2.7 LBG candidates, respectively. Our results are as follows: (1) these WFC3 UVIS filters are very reliable in selecting LBGs with z~2.0, which helps to reduce the gap between the well studied z~>3 and z~0 regimes, (2) the combined number counts agrees very well with the observed change in the surface densities as a function of redshift when compared with the higher redshift LBG samples; and (3) the best-fit Schechter function parameters from the rest-frame UV luminosity functions at three different redshifts fit very well with the evolutionary trend of the characteristic absolute magnitude, and the faint-end slope, as a function of redshift. This is the first study to illustrate the usefulness of the WFC3 UVIS channel observations to select z<3 LBGs. The addition of the new WFC3 on the HST has made it possible to uniformly select LBGs from z~1 to z~9, and significantly enhance our understanding of these galaxies using HST sensitivity and resolution.

We combine new high sensitivity ultraviolet (UV) imaging from the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) with existing deep HST/Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) optical images from the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) program to identify UV-dropouts, which are Lyman break galaxy (LBG) candidates at z~1-3. These new HST/WFC3 observations were taken over 50 sq.arcmin in the GOODS-South field as a part of the Early Release Science program. The uniqueness of these new UV data is that they are observed in 3 UV/optical (WFC3 UVIS) channel filters (F225W, F275W and F336W), which allows us to identify three different sets of UV-dropout samples. We apply Lyman break dropout selection criteria to identify F225W-, F275W- and F336W-dropouts, which are z~1.7, 2.1 and 2.7 LBG candidates, respectively. We use multi-wavelength imaging combined with available spectroscopic and photometric redshifts to carefully access the validity of our UV-dropout candidates. Our results are as follows: (1) these WFC3 UVIS filters are very reliable in selecting LBGs with z~2.0, which will reduce the gap between the well studied z~>3 and z~0 regimes, (2) the combined number counts agrees very well with the observed evolution in number counts when compared with higher redshift LBG samples, and (3) the best-fit Schechter function parameters from the rest-frame UV luminosity functions at three different redshifts fit very well with the evolutionary trend of the characteristic absolute magnitude, and the faint-end slope, as a function of redshift. This is the first study to illustrate the usefulness of the WFC3 UVIS channel observations to select z<3 LBGs. The addition of the new WFC3 on the HST has made it possible to uniformly select LBGs from z~1 to z~9, and significantly enhance our understanding of these galaxies using HST sensitivity and resolution.

We present very deep Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) photometry of a massive, compact galaxy located in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. This quiescent galaxy has a spectroscopic redshift z=1.91 and has been identified as an extremely compact galaxy by Daddi et al. 2005. We use new H-F160W imaging data obtained with Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 to measure the deconvolved surface brightness profile to H = 28 mag arcsec**-2. We find that the surface brightness profile is well approximated by an n=3.7 Sersic profile. Our deconvolved profile is constructed by a new technique which corrects the best-fit Sersic profile with the residual of the fit to the observed image. This allows for galaxy profiles which deviate from a Sersic profile. We determine the effective radius of this galaxy: r_e=0.42 +- 0.14 kpc in the observed H-F160W-band. We show that this result is robust to deviations from the Sersic model used in the fit. We test the sensitivity of our analysis to faint "wings" in the profile using simulated galaxy images consisting of a bright compact component and a faint extended component. We find that due to the combination of the WFC3 imaging depth and our method’s sensitivity to extended faint emission we can accurately trace the intrinsic surface brightness profile, and that we can therefore confidently rule out the existence of a faint extended envelope around the observed galaxy down to our surface brightness limit. These results confirm that the galaxy lies a factor of 10 off from the local mass-size relation.

The new Wide Field Camera 3/IR observations on the Hubble Ultra-Deep Field started investigating the properties of galaxies during the reionization epoch. To interpret these observations, we present a novel approach inspired by the conditional luminosity function method. We calibrate our model to observations at z=6 and assume a non-evolving galaxy luminosity versus halo mass relation. We first compare model predictions against the luminosity function measured at z=5 and z=4. We then predict the luminosity function at z>=7 under the sole assumption of evolution in the underlying dark-matter halo mass function. Our model is consistent with the observed z>6.5 galaxy number counts in the HUDF survey and suggests a possible steepening of the faint-end slope of the luminosity function: alpha(z>8)< -1.9 compared to alpha=-1.74 at z=6. Although we currently see only the brightest galaxies, a hidden population of lower luminosity objects (L/L_{*}> 10^{-4}) might provide >75% of the total reionizing flux. Assuming escape fraction f_{esc}~0.2, clumping factor C~5, top heavy-IMF and low metallicity, galaxies below the detection limit produce complete reionization at z>8. For solar metallicity and normal stellar IMF, reionization finishes at z>6, but a smaller C/f_{esc} is required for an optical depth consistent with the WMAP measurement. Our model highlights that the star formation rate in sub-L_* galaxies has a quasi-linear relation to dark-matter halo mass, suggesting that radiative and mechanical feedback were less effective at z>6 than today.

The addition of Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has led to a dramatic increase in our ability to study the z>6 Universe. The increase in the near-infrared (NIR) sensitivity of WFC3 over previous instruments has enabled us to reach apparent magnitudes approaching 29 (AB). This allows us to probe the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) continuum, redshifted into the NIR at $z>6$. Taking advantage of the large optical depths at this redshift, resulting in the Lyman-alpha break, we use a combination of WFC3 imaging and pre-existing Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) imaging to search for z approx 7 over 4 fields. Our analysis reveals 29 new z approx 7 star forming galaxy candidates in addition to 16 pre-existing candidates already discovered in these fields. The improved statistics from our doubling of the robust sample of z-drop candidates confirms the previously observed evolution of the bright end of the luminosity function.

The addition of Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) has led to a dramatic increase in our ability to study the z>6 Universe. The increase in the near-infrared (NIR) sensitivity of WFC3 over previous instruments has enabled us to reach apparent magnitudes approaching 29 (AB). This allows us to probe the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) continuum, redshifted into the NIR at $z>6$. Taking advantage of the large optical depths at this redshift, resulting in the Lyman-alpha break, we use a combination of WFC3 imaging and pre-existing Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) imaging to search for z approx 7 over 4 fields. Our analysis reveals 29 new z approx 7 star forming galaxy candidates in addition to 16 pre-existing candidates already discovered in these fields. The improved statistics from our doubling of the robust sample of z-drop candidates confirms the previously observed evolution of the bright end of the luminosity function.

The addition of Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the {\em Hubble Space Telescope} ({\em HST}) has led to a dramatic increase in our ability to study the $z>6$ Universe. The increase in the near-infrared (NIR) sensitivity of WFC3 over previous instruments has enabled us to reach apparent magnitudes approaching 29 (AB). This allows us to probe the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) continuum, redshifted into the NIR at $z>6$. Taking advantage of the large optical depths at this redshift, resulting in the Lyman-$\alpha$ break, we use a combination of WFC3 imaging and pre-existing Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) imaging to search for $z\approx 7$ over 4 fields. Our analysis reveals 29 new $z\approx 7$ star forming galaxy candidates in addition to 16 pre-existing candidates already discovered in these fields. The improved statistics from our doubling of the robust sample of $z$-drop candidates confirms the previously observed evolution of the bright end of the luminosity function.

We present a deep optical/near-infrared imaging survey of the Serpens molecular cloud. This survey constitutes the complementary optical data to the Spitzer "Core To Disk" (c2d) Legacy survey in this cloud. The survey was conducted using the Wide Field Camera at the Isaac Newton Telescope. About 0.96 square degrees were imaged in the R and Z filters, covering the entire region where most of the young stellar objects identified by the c2d survey are located. 26524 point-like sources were detected in both R and Z bands down to R=24.5 mag and Z=23 mag with a signal-to-noise ratio better than 3. The 95% completeness limit of our catalog corresponds to 0.04 solar masses for members of the Serpens star forming region (age 2 Myr and distance 260 pc) in the absence of extinction. Adopting the typical extinction of the observed area (Av=7 mag), we estimate a 95% completeness level down to 0.1 solar masses. The astrometric accuracy of our catalog is 0.4 arcsec with respect to the 2MASS catalog. Our final catalog contains J2000 celestial coordinates, magnitudes in the R and Z bands calibrated to the SDSS photometric system and, where possible, JHK magnitudes from 2MASS for sources in 0.96 square degrees in the direction of Serpens. This data product has been already used within the frame of the c2d Spitzer Legacy Project analysis in Serpens to study the star/disk formation and evolution in this cloud; here we use it to obtain new indications of the disk-less population in Serpens.

We study the physical properties of three clusters of galaxies, selected from a BeppoSAX Wide Field Camera (WFC) survey. These sources are identified as 1RXS J153934.7-833535, 1RXS J160147.6-754507, and 1RXS J081232.3-571423 in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey catalogue. We obtained XMM-Newton follow-up observations for these three clusters. We fit single and multi-temperature models to spectra obtained from the EPIC-pn camera to determine the temperature, the chemical composition of the gas and their radial distribution. Since two observations are contaminated by a high soft-proton background, we develop a new method to estimate the effect of this background on the data. For the first time, we present the temperature and iron abundance of two of these three clusters. The iron abundance of 1RXS J153934.7-33535 decreases with radius. The fits to the XMM-Newton and Chandra data show that the radial temperature profile within 3′ towards the centre either flattens or lowers. A Chandra image of the source suggests the presence of X-ray cavities. The gas properties in 1RXS J160147.6-754507 are consistent with a flat radial distribution of iron and temperature within 2′ from the centre. 1RXS J081232.3-571423 is a relatively cool cluster with a temperature of about 3 keV. The radial temperature and iron profiles suggest that 1RXS J153934.7-833535 is a cool core cluster. The Chandra image shows substructure which points toward AGN feedback in the core. The flat radial profiles of the temperature and iron abundance in 1RXS J160147.6-754507 are similar to the profiles of non-cool-core clusters.

We study the physical properties of three clusters of galaxies, selected from a BeppoSAX Wide Field Camera (WFC) survey. These sources are identified as 1RXS J153934.7-833535, 1RXS J160147.6-754507, and 1RXS J081232.3-571423 in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey catalogue. We obtained XMM-Newton follow-up observations for these three clusters. We fit single and multi-temperature models to spectra obtained from the EPIC-pn camera to determine the temperature, the chemical composition of the gas and their radial distribution. Since two observations are contaminated by a high soft-proton background, we develop a new method to estimate the effect of this background on the data. For the first time, we present the temperature and iron abundance of two of these three clusters. The iron abundance of 1RXS J153934.7-33535 decreases with radius. The fits to the XMM-Newton and Chandra data show that the radial temperature profile within 3′ towards the centre either flattens or lowers. A Chandra image of the source suggests the presence of X-ray cavities. The gas properties in 1RXS J160147.6-754507 are consistent with a flat radial distribution of iron and temperature within 2′ from the centre. 1RXS J081232.3-571423 is a relatively cool cluster with a temperature of about 3 keV. The radial temperature and iron profiles suggest that 1RXS J153934.7-833535 is a cool core cluster. The Chandra image shows substructure which points toward AGN feedback in the core. The flat radial profiles of the temperature and iron abundance in 1RXS J160147.6-754507 are similar to the profiles of non-cool-core clusters.

The installation of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) will revolutionize the study of high-redshift galaxy populations. Initial observations of the HST Ultra Deep Field (UDF) have yielded multiple z>~7 dropout candidates. Supplemented by the Great Observatory Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) Early Release Science (ERS) and further UDF pointings, these data will provide crucial information about the most distant known galaxies. However, achieving tight constraints on the z~7 galaxy luminosity function (LF) will require even more ambitious photometric surveys. Using a Fisher matrix approach to fully account for Poisson and cosmic sample variance, as well as covariances in the data, we estimate the uncertainties on LF parameters achieved by surveys of a given area and depth. Applying this method to WFC3 z~7 dropout galaxy samples, we forecast the LF parameter uncertainties for a variety of model surveys. We demonstrate that performing a wide area (~1 deg^2) survey to H_AB~27 depth or increasing the UDF depth to H_AB~30 provides excellent constraints on the high-z LF when combined with the existing UDF GO and GOODS ERS data. We also show that the shape of the matter power spectrum may limit the possible gain of splitting wide area (>~0.5 deg^2) high-redshift surveys into multiple fields to probe statistically independent regions; the increased root-mean-squared density fluctuations in smaller volumes mostly offset the improved variance gained from independent samples.

The installation of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) will revolutionize the study of high-redshift galaxy populations. Initial observations of the HST Ultra Deep Field (UDF) have yielded multiple z>~7 dropout candidates. Supplemented by the Great Observatory Origins Deep Survey (GOODS) Early Release Science (ERS) and further UDF pointings, these data will provide crucial information about the most distant known galaxies. However, achieving tight constraints on the z~7 galaxy luminosity function (LF) will require even more ambitious photometric surveys. Using a Fisher matrix approach to fully account for Poisson and cosmic sample variance, as well as covariances in the data, we estimate the uncertainties on LF parameters achieved by surveys of a given area and depth. Applying this method to WFC3 z~7 dropout galaxy samples, we forecast the LF parameter uncertainties for a variety of model surveys. We demonstrate that performing a wide area (~1 deg^2) survey to H_AB~27 depth or increasing the UDF depth to H_AB~30 provides excellent constraints on the high-z LF when combined with the existing UDF GO and GOODS ERS data. We also show that the shape of the matter power spectrum may limit the possible gain of splitting wide area (>~0.5 deg^2) high-redshift surveys into multiple fields to probe statistically independent regions; the increased root-mean-squared density fluctuations in smaller volumes mostly offset the improved variance gained from independent samples.

The installation of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) will revolutionize the study of high-redshift galaxy populations. Initial observations of the HST Ultra Deep Field (UDF) have yielded multiple z>~7 dropout candidates. Supplemented by the Great Observatory Origins Survey (GOODS) Early Release Science (ERS) and further UDF pointings, these data will provide crucial information about the most distant known galaxies. However, achieving tight constraints on the z~7 galaxy luminosity function (LF) will require even more ambitious photometric surveys. Using a Fisher matrix approach to fully account for Poisson and cosmic sample variance, as well as covariances in the data, we estimate the uncertainties on LF parameters achieved by surveys of a given area and depth. Applying this method to WFC3 z~7 dropout galaxy samples, we forecast the LF parameter uncertainties for a variety of model surveys. We demonstrate that performing a wide area (~1 deg^2) survey to H_AB~27 depth or increasing the UDF depth to H_AB~30 provides excellent constraints on the high-z LF when combined with the existing UDF GO and GOODS ERS data. We also show that the shape of the matter power spectrum may limit the possible gain of splitting wide area (>~0.5 deg^2) high-redshift surveys into multiple fields to probe statistically independent regions; the increased root-mean-squared density fluctuations in smaller volumes mostly offset the improved variance gained from independent samples.

We present Wide Field Camera 3 images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope within a single field in the southern grand design star-forming galaxy M83. Based on their size, morphology and photometry in continuum-subtracted H$\alpha$, [\SII], H$\beta$, [\OIII] and [\OII] filters, we have identified 60 supernova remnant candidates, as well as a handful of young ejecta-dominated candidates. A catalog of these remnants, their sizes and, where possible their H$\alpha$ fluxes are given. Radiative ages and pre-shock densities are derived from those SNR which have good photometry. The ages lie in the range $2.62 < log(\tau_{\rm rad}/{\rm yr}) < 5.0$, and the pre-shock densities at the blast wave range over $0.56 < n_0/{\rm cm^{-3}} < 1680$. Two populations of SNR have been discovered. These divide into a nuclear and spiral arm group and an inter-arm population. We infer an arm to inter-arm density contrast of 4. The surface flux in diffuse X-rays is correlated with the inferred pre-shock density, indicating that the warm interstellar medium is pressurised by the hot X-ray plasma. We also find that the interstellar medium in the nuclear region of M83 is characterized by a very high porosity and pressure and infer a SNR rate of one per 70-150 yr for the nuclear ($R<300 $pc) region. On the basis of the number of SNR detected and their radiative ages, we infer that the lower mass of Type II SNe in M83 is $M_{\rm min} = 16^{+7}_ {-5}$ M$_{\odot}$. Finally we give evidence for the likely detection of the remnant of the historical supernova, SN1968L.

The star formation history of nearby early-type galaxies is investigated via numerical modelling. Idealized hydrodynamical N-body simulations with a star formation prescription are used to study the minor merger process between a giant galaxy (host) and a less massive spiral galaxy (satellite) with reasonable assumptions for the ages and metallicities of the merger progenitors. We find that the evolution of the star formation rate is extended over several dynamical times and shows peaks which correspond to pericentre passages of the satellite. The newly formed stars are mainly located in the central part of the satellite remnant while the older stars of the initial disk are deposited at larger radii in shell-like structures. After the final plunge of the satellite, star formation in the central part of the remnant can continue for several Gyrs depending on the star formation efficiency. Although the mass fraction in new stars is small, we find that the half-mass radius differs from the half-light radius in the V and H bands. Moreover synthetic 2D images in J, H, NUV, Hb and V bands, using the characteristic filters of the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), reveal that residual star formation induced by gas-rich minor mergers can be clearly observed during and after the final plunge, especially in the NUV band, for interacting systems at (z<0.023) over moderate numbers of orbits (~2 orbits correspond to typical exposure times of ~3600 sec). This suggests that WFC3 has the potential to resolve these substructures, characterize plausible past merger episodes, and give clues to the formation of early-type galaxies.