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1. (Nearly) Model-independent Constraints on the Neutral Hydrogen Fraction in the Intergalactic Medium at z ∼ 5–7 Using Dark Pixel Fractions in Lyα and Lyβ Forests

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aca678  

   Jin, Xiangyu; Yang, Jinyi; Fan, Xiaohui; Wang, Feige; Bañados, Eduardo; Bian, Fuyan; Davies, Frederick B.; Eilers, Anna-Christina; Farina, Emanuele Paolo; Hennawi, Joseph F.; et al (January 2023, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract Cosmic reionization was the last major phase transition of hydrogen from neutral to highly ionized in the intergalactic medium (IGM). Current observations show that the IGM is significantly neutral atz> 7 and largely ionized byz∼ 5.5. However, most methods to measure the IGM neutral fraction are highly model dependent and are limited to when the volume-averaged neutral fraction of the IGM is either relatively low ( ${\overline{x}}_{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{I}}\lesssim {10}^{-3}$ ) or close to unity ( ${\overline{x}}_{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{I}}\sim 1$ ). In particular, the neutral fraction evolution of the IGM at the critical redshift range ofz= 6–7 is poorly constrained. We present new constraints on ${\overline{x}}_{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{I}}$ atz∼ 5.1–6.8 by analyzing deep optical spectra of 53 quasars at 5.73 <z< 7.09. We derive model-independent upper limits on the neutral hydrogen fraction based on the fraction of “dark” pixels identified in the Lyαand Lyβforests, without any assumptions on the IGM model or the intrinsic shape of the quasar continuum. They are the first model-independent constraints on the IGM neutral hydrogen fraction atz∼ 6.2–6.8 using quasar absorption measurements. Our results give upper limits of ${\overline{x}}_{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{I}}(z=6.3)<0.79\pm 0.04$ (1σ), ${\overline{x}}_{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{I}}(z=6.5)<0.87\pm 0.03$ (1σ), and ${\overline{x}}_{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{I}}(z=6.7)<{0.94}_{-0.09}^{+0.06}$ (1σ). The dark pixel fractions atz> 6.1 are consistent with the redshift evolution of the neutral fraction of the IGM derived from Planck 2018. 

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2. A Uniform Analysis of Gas-phase Metallicity Evolution with 1–3 Gyr Time Sampling over the Past 12 Gyr

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ae4590  

   Jain, Shweta; Sanders, Ryan L; Khostovan, Ali Ahmad; Jones, Tucker; Shapley, Alice E; Reddy, Naveen A; Garcia, Alex M; Torrey, Paul; Coil, Alison (March 2026, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract We present a systematic investigation of the evolution of the mass–metallicity relation (MZR) and fundamental metallicity relation (FMR) using uniform metallicity diagnostics across redshiftsz∼ 0 toz∼ 3.3. We present new Keck/Deep Imaging Multi-Object Spectrograph measurements of the [OII]λλ3726, 3729 emission line doublet for star-forming galaxies atz∼ 1.5 with existing measurements of redder rest-optical lines from the MOSFIRE Deep Evolution Field survey. These new observations enable uniform estimation of the gas-phase oxygen abundance using ratios of the [OII], Hβ, and [OIII] lines for mass-binned samples of star-forming galaxies in six redshift bins, employing strong line calibrations that account for the distinct interstellar medium ionization conditions atz< 1 andz> 1. We find that the low-mass power-law slope of the MZR remains constant over this redshift range with a value ofγ= 0.28 ± 0.01, implying the outflow metal loading factor ( ${\zeta }_{\text{out}}=\frac{Z_{\text{out}}}{Z_{\text{ISM}}}\frac{{\dot{M}}_{\text{out}}}{\text{SFR}}$ ) scales approximately as ${\zeta }_{\mathrm{out}}\propto M_{*}^{-0.3}$ out to at leastz∼ 3.3. The normalization of the MZR at 10¹⁰M_⊙decreases with increasing redshift at a rate of $d\log \left(\text{O/H}\right)/dz=-0.11\pm 0.01$ across the full redshift range. We find that any evolution of the FMR is smaller than 0.1 dex out toz∼ 3.3. We compare to cosmological galaxy formation simulations, and find that IllustrisTNG matches our measured combination of a nearly-invariant MZR slope, rate of MZR normalization decrease, and constant or very weakly evolving FMR. This work provides the most detailed view of MZR and FMR evolution from the present day through Cosmic Noon with a fine time sampling of 1−3 Gyr, setting a robust baseline for metallicity evolution studies atz> 4 with JWST. 

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3. The Ionization and Dynamics of the Makani Galactic Wind

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/acbfae  

   Rupke, David S.; Coil, Alison L.; Perrotta, Serena; Davis, Julie D.; Diamond-Stanic, Aleksandar M.; Geach, James E.; Hickox, Ryan C.; Moustakas, John; Petter, Grayson C.; Rudnick, Gregory H.; et al (April 2023, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract The Makani galaxy hosts the poster child of a galactic wind on scales of the circumgalactic medium. It consists of a two-episode wind in which the slow, outer wind originated 400 Myr ago (Episode I;R_I= 20 − 50 kpc) and the fast, inner wind is 7 Myr old (Episode II;R_II= 0 − 20 kpc). While this wind contains ionized, neutral, and molecular gas, the physical state and mass of the most extended phase—the warm, ionized gas—are unknown. Here we present Keck optical spectra of the Makani outflow. These allow us to detect hydrogen lines out tor= 30–40 kpc and thus constrain the mass, momentum, and energy in the wind. Many collisionally excited lines are detected throughout the wind, and their line ratios are consistent with 200–400 km s⁻¹shocks that power the ionized gas, withv_shock=σ_wind. Combining shock models, density-sensitive line ratios, and mass and velocity measurements, we estimate that the ionized mass and outflow rate in the Episode II wind could be as high as those of the molecular gas: $M_{\mathrm{II}}^{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{II}}\sim M_{\mathrm{II}}^{{\mathrm{H}}_2}=(1-2)\times {10}^9{M}_{\odot }$ and $\mathit{dM}/{\mathit{dt}}_{\mathrm{II}}^{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{II}}\sim \mathit{dM}/{\mathit{dt}}_{\mathrm{II}}^{{\mathrm{H}}_2}=170-250M_{\odot }$ yr⁻¹. The outer wind has slowed, so that $\mathit{dM}/{\mathit{dt}}_{\mathrm{I}}^{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{II}}\sim 10M_{\odot }$ yr⁻¹, but it contains more ionized gas, $M_{\mathrm{I}}^{\mathrm{H}\mathrm{II}}=5\times {10}^9$ M_⊙. The momentum and energy in the recent Episode II wind imply a momentum-driven flow (p“boost” ∼7) driven by the hot ejecta and radiation pressure from the Eddington-limited, compact starburst. Much of the energy and momentum in the older Episode I wind may reside in a hotter phase, or lie further into the circumgalactic medium. 

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4. The Luminosity Function and Clustering of H α Emitting Galaxies at z  ≈ 4−6 from a Complete NIRCam Grism Redshift Survey

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ae225e  

   Lin, Xiaojing; Egami, Eiichi; Sun, Fengwu; Zhang, Haowen; Fan, Xiaohui; Helton, Jakob M; Wang, Feige; Bunker, Andrew J; Cai, Zheng; Eisenstein, Daniel J; et al (January 2026, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract We study the luminosity function (LF) and clustering properties of 888 Hαemitters (HAEs) at 3.75 < z < 6 in the GOODS-N field. The sample, built from JWST CONGRESS and FRESCO NIRCam grism surveys using a novel redshift assignment algorithm, spans ∼62 arcmin²and reachesL_Hα ∼ 10^41.2erg s⁻¹. We identify two prominent filamentary protoclusters atz ≈ 4.41 andz ≈ 5.19, hosting 98 and 144 HAEs, respectively. The observed HαLFs show similar shallow faint-end slopes for both protocluster and field galaxies at 3.75 < z < 5, and for the protocluster at 5 < z < 6 (α ≈ −1.2 to −1.3). In contrast, the field LF at 5 < z < 6 has a much steeper slope ( $\alpha =-1.87_{-0.23}^{+0.30}$ ), suggesting that protocluster galaxies atz > 5 are more evolved, resembling the populations at 3.75 < z < 5. The observed star formation rate density from Hαintegrated down to 0.45M_⊙yr⁻¹, is $0.050_{-0.003}^{+0.002}{M}_{\odot }{\mathrm{yr}}^{-1}{\mathrm{Mpc}}^{-3}$ at 3.75 < z < 5 and $0.046_{-0.004}^{+0.006}{M}_{\odot }{\mathrm{yr}}^{-1}{\mathrm{Mpc}}^{-3}$ at 5 < z < 6, with protoclusters contributing about 25% and 55%, respectively. This implies a large fraction of star formation atz> 4 occurs in protoclusters. For the first time, we conduct the star formation-rate-limited three-dimensional clustering analysis atz > 4. We find that the filamentary geometry of protoclusters flattens the power-law shape of the HAE autocorrelation functions, with slopes much shallower than the typically assumed value. The autocorrelation function of field HAEs has a correlation length of $r_0=4.61_{-0.68}^{+1.00}{h}^{-1}\mathrm{Mpc}$ atz ≈ 4−5 and $r_0=6.23_{-1.13}^{+1.68}{h}^{-1}\mathrm{Mpc}$ atz ≈ 5−6. Comparing the observed correlation functions with the UniverseMachinesimulation, we infer the dark matter (sub-)halo masses of HAEs to be $\log (M_h/M_{\odot })=11.0-11.2$ atz ≈ 4−6, with a scatter of 0.4 dex. 

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5. JWST’s PEARLS: Temperatures of Nine Highly Magnified Stars in a Galaxy at Redshift 0.94 and Simulated Stellar Population Dependence on Stellar Metallicity and the Initial Mass Function

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ae1966  

   Williams, Hayley; Kelly, Patrick L; Windhorst, Rogier A; Filippenko, Alexei V; Alfred, Amruth; Broadhurst, Tom; Chen, Wenlei; Conselice, Christopher J; Cohen, Seth H; Diego, José M; et al (December 2025, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract We present stellar atmosphere modeling of JWST NIRCam photometry of nine highly magnified individual stars in a single galaxy at redshiftz= 0.94 known as the Warhol arc, which is strongly lensed by the galaxy cluster MACS J0416. Seven of these transients were identified by Yan et al. The nine sources are likely red supergiants with temperaturesT_eff ≈ 4000 K. We present new long-slit spectroscopy of the Warhol arc acquired with Keck I telescope and the Large Binocular Telescope, and use these data to help constrain the arc’s oxygen abundance to be $12+\log (\mathrm{O}/\mathrm{H})=8.45\pm 0.08$ . A microlensing simulation is performed on synthetic stellar populations using a range of stellar metallicities and initial mass function (IMF) slopes. The temperature distribution of the simulated detectable stars is sensitive to the choice of stellar metallicity, and setting the stellar metallicity equal to the arc’s nebular metallicity ( $\log (Z_{*}/Z_{\odot })=-0.24$ ) produces a simulated temperature distribution that is consistent with the observations, while lower stellar metallicities ( $\log (Z_{*}/Z_{\odot })<\text{–}0.75$ ) produce simulated temperatures that are inconsistent with the observations. The expected detection rate is strongly anticorrelated with the IMF slope forα > 1.2. For the canonical IMF slopeα = 2.35, the simulation yields expected transient detection rates that agree with the observed detection rates in the Hubble Space Telescope Flashlights filters, but overpredicts the detection rate by a factor of ∼3–12 (<2σtension) in the JWST filters. The simulated detection rate is sensitive to the choice of stellar metallicity, with lower metallicities ( $\log (Z_{*}/Z_{\odot })<\text{–}0.75$ ) yielding a significantly lower simulated detection rate that further reduces the modest tension with the observations. 

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