Combined tracer analysis for DESI 2024 BAO

Abstract This paper demonstrates how the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) Data Release 1 (DR1) and future baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) analyses can optimally combine overlapping tracers (galaxies of distinct types) in the same redshift range. We make a unified catalog of Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) and Emission Line Galaxies (ELGs) in the redshift range 0.8 < z < 1.1 and investigate the impact on the BAO constraints. DESI DR1 contains ∼ 30% of the final DESI LRG sample and less than 25% of the final ELG sample, and the combination of LRGs and ELGs increases the number density and reduces the shot noise. We developed a pipeline to merge the overlapping tracers using galaxy bias as an approximately optimal weight and tested the pipeline on a suite of Abacus simulations, calibrated on the final version of the DESI Early Data Release. When applying our pipeline to the DESI DR1 catalog, we find an improvement in the BAO constraints of 11% for α iso and ∼ 7.0% for α AP consistent with our findings in mock catalogs. Our analysis was integrated into the DESI DR1 BAO analysis to produce the LRG+ELG result in the 0.8 < z < 1.1 redshift bin, which provided the most precise BAO measurement from DESI DR1 with a 0.86% constraint on the BAO distance scale and a 9.1 σ detection of the isotropic BAO feature.

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Publication Details

Journal
Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Published
2026-04-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1088/1475-7516/2026/04/058
Primary Topic
Engineering Applied Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Combined tracer analysis for DESI 2024 BAO

D. Kirkby, Will J. Percival, O. Lahav, Rongpu Zhou et al.
Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Engineering Applied Research
article

Combined tracer analysis for DESI 2024 BAO

D. Kirkby, Will J. Percival, O. Lahav, Rongpu Zhou, Sara Ferraro, E. Chaussidon, S. Chen, G Rossi, Florian Beutler, N. Palanque‐Delabrouille, S. Nadathur, G. Tarlé, Andreu Font-Ribera, D. Bianchi, D. Valcin, David J. Schlegel, Ignasi Pérez-Ràfols, Axel de la Macorra, Martin Landriau, Lado Samushia, Jing Yu, M. E. Levi, Rossana Ruggeri, Marc Manera, E. Sánchez, Adam Lambert, J. Aguilar, Nikhil Padmanabhan, K.S Dawson, Anthony Kremin, Satya Gontcho A Gontcho, J. Mena-Fernández, Ashley J. Ross, ChangHoon Hahn, E. Gaztañaga, Andrei Cuceu, Cullan Howlett, Jeffrey H. Silber, E. Paillas, J. E. Forero-Romero, S. P. Ahlen, Aaron Meisner, Biprateep Dey, D Brooks, Peter McDonald, M. Rashkovetskyi, M Schubnell, John Moustakas, U. Andrade, Arnaud de Mattia, Mustapha Ishak, A.J Rosado-Marín, Xun Chen, Hee‐Jong Seo, Hu Zou, K Honscheid, R Miquel, P. Doel, G. Gutierrez, R. Kehoe, T. Kisner, Z. Ding, Marc Manera, T. Claybaugh, Francisco Prada, F. Prada, D. Sprayberry
article en

Abstract

Abstract This paper demonstrates how the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) Data Release 1 (DR1) and future baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) analyses can optimally combine overlapping tracers (galaxies of distinct types) in the same redshift range. We make a unified catalog of Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) and Emission Line Galaxies (ELGs) in the redshift range 0.8 < z < 1.1 and investigate the impact on the BAO constraints. DESI DR1 contains ∼ 30% of the final DESI LRG sample and less than 25% of the final ELG sample, and the combination of LRGs and ELGs increases the number density and reduces the shot noise. We developed a pipeline to merge the overlapping tracers using galaxy bias as an approximately optimal weight and tested the pipeline on a suite of Abacus simulations, calibrated on the final version of the DESI Early Data Release. When applying our pipeline to the DESI DR1 catalog, we find an improvement in the BAO constraints of 11% for α iso and ∼ 7.0% for α AP consistent with our findings in mock catalogs. Our analysis was integrated into the DESI DR1 BAO analysis to produce the LRG+ELG result in the 0.8 < z < 1.1 redshift bin, which provided the most precise BAO measurement from DESI DR1 with a 0.86% constraint on the BAO distance scale and a 9.1 σ detection of the isotropic BAO feature.

Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle PhysicsVol. 2026(04)
Boston University (US), Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ES), Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ES), Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine (CN), Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (US), Institute of Space Sciences (ES), University of Arizona (US), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (US), University of Waterloo (CA), Queensland University of Technology (AU), Universidad de Los Andes (CO), The University of Texas at Dallas (US), The University of Queensland (AU), Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (JP), University of Pittsburgh (US), Southern Methodist University (US), Ilia State University (GE), Perimeter Institute (CA), University of Toronto (CA), Institute for High Energy Physics (ES), University of Milan (IT), Kansas State University (US), University of California, Irvine (US), University of Utah (US), Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (FR), Université Paris-Saclay (FR), University of Michigan (US), Brera Astronomical Observatory (IT), Evgeni Kharadze Georgian National Astrophysical Observatory (GE), Sejong University (KR), Center for Theoretical Physics (PL), Yale University (US), Institute for Advanced Study (US), Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (DE), Institut d'Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (ES), Royal Observatory (GB), Ohio University (US), Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian (US), CEA Paris-Saclay (FR), Community Science and Data Center (US), Laboratoire de Physique Subatomique et de Cosmologie (FR), Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (ES), National Astronomical Observatories (CN), University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Institut de Recherche sur les Lois Fondamentales de l'Univers (FR), Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (ES), University College London (GB), UK Astronomy Technology Centre (GB), University of Virginia (US), The Ohio State University (US), University of Portsmouth (GB), The University of Tokyo (JP), Michigan State University (US), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (MX), Universidad Diego Portales (CL), Siena College (US), University of California, Berkeley (US), Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (ES)
National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Office of Science, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Division of Astronomical Sciences, High Energy Physics
Openalex Percentile: Top 100%
Engineering Applied Research
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