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We present a multi-wavelength photometric catalog in the COSMOS field as part of the observations by the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS). The catalog is based on Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 (HST/WFC3) and Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) observations of the COSMOS field (centered at RA: $10^h00^m28^s$, Dec:$+02^{\circ}12^{\prime}21^{\prime\prime}$). The final catalog has 38671 sources with photometric data in forty two bands from UV to the infrared ($\rm \sim 0.3-8\,\mu m$). This includes broad-band photometry from the HST, CFHT, Subaru, VISTA and Spitzer Space Telescope in the visible, near infrared and infrared bands along with intermediate and narrow-band photometry from Subaru and medium band data from Mayall NEWFIRM. Source detection was conducted in the WFC3 F160W band (at $\rm 1.6\,\mu m$) and photometry is generated using the Template FITting algorithm. We further present a catalog of the physical properties of sources as identified in the HST F160W band and measured from the multi-band photometry by fitting the observed spectral energy distributions of sources against templates., Comment: 28 Pages, 22 Figures and 10 Tables. Accepted for Publication in the ApJS

We use a sample of 8298 galaxies observed in the HST GOODS NICMOS Survey (GNS) to construct the galaxy stellar mass function as a function of both redshift and stellar mass up to z=3.5 and down to masses of Mstar=10^8.5 Msun at z~1. We discover that a significant fraction of all massive Mstar>10^11 Msun galaxies are in place up to the highest redshifts we probe, with a decreasing fraction of lower mass galaxies present at all redshifts. This is an example of `galaxy mass downsizing', and is the result of massive galaxies forming before lower mass ones, and not just simply ending their star formation earlier as in traditional downsizing scenarios. We find that the faint end slope is significantly steeper than what is found in previous investigations. We demonstrate that this steeper mass function better matches the stellar mass added due to star formation, thereby alleviating some of the mismatch between these two measures of the evolution of galaxy mass. We furthermore examine the stellar mass function divided into blue/red systems, as well as for star forming and non-star forming galaxies. We find a similar mass downsizing present for both blue/red and star-forming/non-star forming galaxies, and that the low mass galaxies are mostly all blue, and are therefore creating the steep mass functions. We furthermore show that, although there is a downsizing such that high mass galaxies are nearer their z=0 values at high redshift, this turns over at masses Mstar~10^10 Msun, such that the lowest mass galaxies are more common than galaxies at slight higher masses, creating a `dip' in the observed galaxy mass function. We argue that the galaxy assembly process may be driven by different mechanisms at low and high masses, and that the efficiency of the galaxy formation process is lowest at masses Mstar~10^10 Msun at 1

[Abridged] To investigate the evolution in the relation between galaxy stellar and central black hole mass we construct a volume limited complete sample of 85 AGN with host galaxy stellar masses M_{*} > 10^{10.5} M_{sol}, and specific X-ray luminosities L_{X} > 2.35 x 10^{43} erg s^{-1} at 0.4 2.35 x 10^{43} erg s^{-1}) rises with redshift from 1.2 +/- 0.2 % at z = 0.7 to 7.4 +/- 2.0 % at z = 2.5. We use our results to calculate the maximum timescales for which our sample of AGN can continue to accrete at their observed rates before surpassing the local galaxy-black hole mass relation. We use these timescales to calculate the total fraction of massive galaxies which will be active (with L_{X} > 2.35 x 10^{43} erg s^{-1}) since z = 3, finding that at least ~ 40% of all massive galaxies will be Seyfert luminosity AGN or brighter during this epoch. Further, we calculate the energy density due to AGN activity in the Universe as 1.0 (+/- 0.3) x 10^{57} erg Mpc^{-3} Gyr^{-1}, potentially providing a significant source of energy for AGN feedback on star formation. We also use this method to compute the evolution in the X-ray luminosity density of AGN with redshift, finding that massive galaxy Seyfert luminosity AGN are the dominant source of X-ray emission in the Universe at z < 3.

We present results from the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey (CANDELS) photometric redshift methods investigation. In this investigation, the results from eleven participants, each using a different combination of photometric redshift code, template spectral energy distributions (SEDs) and priors, are used to examine the properties of photometric redshifts applied to deep fields with broad-band multi-wavelength coverage. The photometry used includes U-band through mid-infrared filters and was derived using the TFIT method. Comparing the results, we find that there is no particular code or set of template SEDs that results in significantly better photometric redshifts compared to others. However, we find codes producing the lowest scatter and outlier fraction utilize a training sample to optimize photometric redshifts by adding zero-point offsets, template adjusting or adding extra smoothing errors. These results therefore stress the importance of the training procedure. We find a strong dependence of the photometric redshift accuracy on the signal-to-noise ratio of the photometry. On the other hand, we find a weak dependence of the photometric redshift scatter with redshift and galaxy color. We find that most photometric redshift codes quote redshift errors (e.g., 68% confidence intervals) that are too small compared to that expected from the spectroscopic control sample. We find that all codes show a statistically significant bias in the photometric redshifts. However, the bias is in all cases smaller than the scatter, the latter therefore dominates the errors. Finally, we find that combining results from multiple codes significantly decreases the photometric redshift scatter and outlier fraction. We discuss different ways of combining data to produce accurate photometric redshifts and error estimates., 26 pages, 15 figures, ApJ in press

Using deep B band imaging down to mu_{B} = 26 mag arcsec^{-2}, we present evidence for tidal tails in the Antlia Dwarf galaxy, one of the most distant members of the Local Group. This elongation is in the direction of Antlia's nearest neighbor, the Magellanic-type NGC 3109. The tail is offset by less than 10 degrees from a vector linking the centers of the two galaxies, indicative of interactions between the pair. Combined with the warped disc previously identified in NGC 3109, Antlia and NGC 3109 must be at a small separation for tidal features to be present in Antlia. We calculate that Antlia cannot be completely disrupted by NGC 3109 in a single interaction unless its orbit pericenter is less than 6 kpc, however multiple interactions could significantly alter its morphology. Therefore despite being located right at the edge of the Local Group, environmental effects are playing an important role in Antlia's evolution., 8 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in ApJL

We investigate the total major (>1:4 by stellar mass) and minor (>1:100 by stellar mass) merger history of a population of 80 massive (M * > 1011 M ⊙) galaxies at high redshifts (z = 1.7-3). We utilize extremely deep and high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope H-band imaging from the GOODS NICMOS Survey, which corresponds to rest-frame optical wavelengths at the redshifts probed. We find that massive galaxies at high redshifts are often morphologically disturbed, with a CAS (concentration, C; asymmetry, A; clumpiness, S) deduced merger fraction fm = 0.23 ± 0.05 at z = 1.7-3. We find close accord between close pair methods (within 30 kpc apertures) and CAS methods for deducing major merger fractions at all redshifts. We deduce the total (minor + major) merger history of massive galaxies with M * > 109 M ⊙ galaxies, and find that this scales roughly linearly with log-stellar-mass and magnitude range. We test our close pair methods by utilizing mock galaxy catalogs from the Millennium Simulation. We compute the total number of mergers to be (4.5 ± 2.9)/langτ m rang from z = 3 to the present, to a stellar mass sensitivity threshold of ~1:100 (where τ m is the merger timescale in Gyr which varies as a function of mass). This corresponds to an average mass increase of (3.4 ± 2.2) × 1011 M ⊙ over the past 11.5 Gyr due to merging. We show that the size evolution observed for these galaxies may be mostly explained by this merging., The Astrophysical Journal, 747 (1), ISSN:0004-637X, ISSN:2041-8213

We present our results on the structure and activity of massive galaxies at z=1-3 using one of the largest (166 with M_star>=5e10 M_sun) and most diverse samples of massive galaxies derived from the GOODS-NICMOS survey: (1) Sersic fits to deep NIC3/F160W images indicate that the rest-frame optical structures of massive galaxies are very different at z=2-3 compared to z~0. Approximately 40% of massive galaxies are ultra-compact (r_e2. The large fraction of n2. In order for massive galaxies at z=2-3 to evolve into present-day massive E/S0s, they need to significantly increase (n, r_e). Dry minor and major mergers may play an important role in this process., 49 pages, 22 figures; accepted by ApJ, minor changes from version v1

In this paper we perform a comprehensive study of the main sources of random and systematic errors in stellar mass measurement for galaxies using their Spectral Energy Distributions (SEDs). We use mock galaxy catalogs with simulated multi-waveband photometry (from U-band to mid-infrared) and known redshift, stellar mass, age and extinction for individual galaxies. Given different parameters affecting stellar mass measurement (photometric S/N ratios, SED fitting errors, systematic effects, the inherent degeneracies and correlated errors), we formulated different simulated galaxy catalogs to quantify these effects individually. We studied the sensitivity of stellar mass estimates to the codes/methods used, population synthesis models, star formation histories, nebular emission line contributions, photometric uncertainties, extinction and age. For each simulated galaxy, the difference between the input stellar masses and those estimated using different simulation catalogs, $\Delta\log(M)$, was calculated and used to identify the most fundamental parameters affecting stellar masses. We measured different components of the error budget, with the results listed as follows: (1). no significant bias was found among different codes/methods, with all having comparable scatter; (2). A source of error is found to be due to photometric uncertainties and low resolution in age and extinction grids; (3). The median of stellar masses among different methods provides a stable measure of the mass associated with any given galaxy; (4). The deviations in stellar mass strongly correlate with those in age, with a weaker correlation with extinction; (5). the scatter in the stellar masses due to free parameters are quantified, with the sensitivity of the stellar mass to both the population synthesis codes and inclusion of nebular emission lines studied., Comment: 33 pages, 20 Figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysical Journal

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., 39 pages, 25 figures