We present new improved constraints on the Hubble parameterH(z) in the redshift range 0.15 <z< 1.1, obtained from the differential spectroscopic evolution of early-type galaxies as a function of redshift. We extract a large sample of early-type galaxies ( ∼ 11000) from several spectroscopic surveys, spanning almost 8 billion years of cosmic lookback time (0.15 <z< 1.42). We select the most massive, red elliptical galaxies, passively evolving and without signature of ongoing star formation. Those galaxies can be used as standard cosmic chronometers, as firstly proposed by Jimenez & Loeb (2002), whose differential age evolution as a function of cosmic time directly probesH(z). We analyze the 4000 Å break (D4000) as a function of redshift, use stellar population synthesis models to theoretically calibrate the dependence of the differential age evolution on the differentialD4000, and estimate the Hubble parameter taking into account both statistical and systematical errors. We provide 8 new measurements ofH(z) (see table 4), and determine its change inH(z) to a precision of 5–12% mapping homogeneously the redshift range up toz∼ 1.1; for the first time, we place a constraint onH(z) atz≠0 with a precision comparable with the one achieved for the Hubble constant (about 5–6% atz∼ 0.2), and covered a redshift range (0.5 <z< 0.8) which is crucial to distinguish many different quintessence cosmologies. These measurements have been tested to best match a ΛCDM model, clearly providing a statistically robust indication that the Universe is undergoing an accelerated expansion. This method shows the potentiality to open a new avenue in constrain a variety of alternative cosmologies, especially when future surveys (e.g. Euclid) will open the possibility to extend it up toz∼ 2.

In this paper we describe the first data release of the UltraVISTA near-infrared imaging survey of the COSMOS field. We summarise the key goals and design of the survey and provide a detailed description of our data reduction techniques. We provide stacked, sky-subtracted images in YJH K s and narrow-band filters constructed from data collected during the first year of UltraVISTA observations. Our stacked images reach 5σ AB depths in an aperture of 2″ diameter of ~25 in Y and ~24 in JH K s bands and all have sub-arcsecond seeing. To this 5σ limit, our K s catalogue contains 216 268 sources. We carry out a series of quality assessment tests on our images and catalogues, comparing our stacks with existing catalogues. The 1σ astrometric rms in both directions for stars selected with 17.0 < K s(AB) < 19.5 is ~0.08″ in comparison to the publicly-available COSMOS ACS catalogues. Our images are resampled to the same pixel scale and tangent point as the publicly available COSMOS data and so may be easily used to generate multi-colour catalogues using this data. All images and catalogues presented in this paper are publicly available through ESO’s “phase 3” archiving and distribution system and from the UltraVISTA web site.

Context. Deep representative surveys of galaxies at different epochs are needed to make progress in understanding galaxy evolution.Aims. We describe the completed VIMOS VLT Deep Survey and the final data release of 35 016 galaxies and type-I AGN with measured spectroscopic redshifts covering all epochs up to redshift z ~ 6.7, in areas from 0.142 to 8.7 square degrees, and volumes from 0.5 × 106 to 2 × 107 h -3 Mpc3. Methods. We selected samples of galaxies based solely on their i-band magnitude reaching i AB = 24.75. Spectra were obtained with VIMOS on the ESO-VLT integrating 0.75 h, 4.5 h, and 18 h for the Wide, Deep, and Ultra-Deep nested surveys, respectively. We demonstrate that any “redshift desert” can be crossed successfully using spectra covering 3650 ≤ λ ≤ 9350 Å. A total of 1263 galaxies were again observed independently within the VVDS and from the VIPERS and MASSIV surveys. They were used to establish the redshift measurements reliability, to assess completeness in the VVDS sample, and to provide a weighting scheme taking the survey selection function into account. We describe the main properties of the VVDS samples, and the VVDS is compared to other spectroscopic surveys in the literature.Results. In total we have obtained spectroscopic redshifts for 34 594 galaxies, 422 type-I AGN, and 12 430 Galactic stars. The survey enabled identifying galaxies up to very high redshifts with 4669 redshifts in 1 ≤ z spec ≤ 2, 561 in 2 ≤ z spec ≤ 3, and 468 with z spec > 3, and specific populations like Lyman-α emitters were identified out to z = 6.62. We show that the VVDS occupies a unique place in the parameter space defined by area, depth, redshift coverage, and number of spectra.Conclusions. The VIMOS VLT Deep Survey provides a comprehensive survey of the distant universe, covering all epochs since z ~ 6, or more than 12 Gyr of cosmic time, with a uniform selection, which is the largest such sample to date. A wealth of science results derived from the VVDS have shed new light on the evolution of galaxies and AGN and on their distribution in space over this large cosmic time. The VVDS further demonstrates that large deep spectroscopic redshift surveys over all these epochs in the distant Universe are a key tool to observational cosmology. To enhance the legacy value of the survey, a final public release of the complete VVDS spectroscopic redshift sample is available at http://cesam.lam.fr/vvds.

We present the VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey (VUDS), a spectroscopic redshift survey of ~10 000 very faint galaxies to study the main phase of galaxy assembly in 2 < z ≃ 6. The survey covers 1 deg2 in three separate fields: COSMOS, ECDFS, and VVDS-02h, with the selection of targets based on an inclusive combination of photometric redshifts and colour properties. Spectra covering 3650 < λ < 9350 Å are obtained with VIMOS on the ESO-VLT with integration times of 14h. Here we present the survey strategy, target selection, data processing, and the redshift measurement process with an emphasis on the specific methods used to adapt to this high-redshift range. We discuss the spectra quality and redshift reliability and derive a success rate in redshift measurement of 91%, or 74% by limiting the dataset to the most reliable measurements, down to a limiting magnitude i AB = 25. Measurements are performed all the way down to i AB = 27. The mean redshift of the main sample is z ~ 3 and extends over a broad redshift range mainly in 2 < z < 6. At 3 < z < 5, the galaxies cover a wide range of luminosities −23 < M NUV < −20.5, stellar mass 109 M ⊙ < M ∗ < 1011 M ⊙, and star formation rates 1M ⊙/yr < SFR < 103 M ⊙/yr. We discuss the spectral properties of galaxies using individual as well asstacked spectra. The comparison between spectroscopic and photometric redshifts as well as colour selection demonstrate the effectiveness of our selection scheme. From about ~ 90% of the data analysed so far, we expect to assemble >6000 galaxies with reliable spectroscopic redshifts in 2 < z < 6 when complete. This makes the VUDS the largest survey at these redshifts and offers the opportunity for unprecedented studies of the star-forming galaxy population and its distribution in large-scale structures during the main phase of galaxy assembly.

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