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Abstract The intergalactic helium became fully ionized by the end of cosmic noon (z∼ 2).Similarly to the reionization of hydrogen, helium reionization is expected to be patchy, driven by luminous quasars that ionize the intergalactic gas in their surrounding environment.Probing the morphology of ionized electrons during this epoch can provide crucial information about early structure formation, including the clustering and luminosities of quasars, the accretion rates, variability, and lifetimes of active galactic nuclei, as well as the growth and evolution of supermassive black holes.In this study, we present how measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) can be used to reconstruct the optical-depth fluctuations resulting from patchy helium reionization.As helium reionization occurred at lower redshifts, upcoming probes of large-scale structure surveys will present a significant opportunity to enhance the prospects of probing this epoch by their combined analysis with the CMB.Using a joint information-matrix analysis of hydrogen and helium reionization, we show that near-future galaxy and CMB surveys will have enough statistical power to detect optical-depth fluctuations due to doubly-ionized helium, providing a way of measuring the redshift and duration of helium reionization to high significance.We also show that modeling uncertainties in helium reionization can impact the measurement precision of parameters characterizing hydrogen reionization. 

ABSTRACT Rapid formation of supermassive black holes occurs in dense nuclear star clusters that are initially gas-dominated. Stellar-mass black hole remnants of the most massive cluster stars sink into the core, where a massive runaway black hole forms as a consequence of combined effects of repeated mergers and Eddington-limited gas accretion. The associated gravitational wave signals of high-redshift extreme mass-ratio inspirals are a unique signature of the nuclear star cluster scenario. 

Abstract Astrometry, the precise measurement of star motions, offers an alternative avenue to investigate low-frequency gravitational waves through the spatial deflection of photons, complementing pulsar timing arrays reliant on timing residuals. Upcoming data from Gaia, Theia, and Roman can not only cross-check pulsar timing array findings but also explore the uncharted frequency range bridging pulsar timing arrays and LISA. We present an analytical framework to evaluate the feasibility of detecting a gravitational wave background, considering measurement noise and the intrinsic variability of the stochastic background. Furthermore, we highlight astrometry's crucial role in uncovering key properties of the gravitational wave background, such as spectral index and chirality, employing information-matrix analysis. Finally, we simulate the emergence of quadrupolar correlations, commonly referred to as the generalized Hellings-Downs curves. 

Abstract Black hole (BH) demographics in different environments is critical in view of recent results on massive star binarity, and of the multimessenger detectability of compact object mergers. But the identification and characterization of noninteracting BHs are elusive, especially in the sparse field stellar population. A candidate noninteractive BH + red giant (RG) binary system, 2MASS J05215658+4359220, was identified by T. A. Thompson et al. We obtained Astrosat/UVIT far-ultraviolet (FUV) imaging and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) UV−optical imaging and spectroscopy of the source to test possible scenarios for the optically elusive companion. HST/STIS spectra from ≈1600 to 10230 Å are best fit by the combination of two stellar sources, a RG withT_eff= 4250 ± 150 K, logg= 2.0,R_RG∼ 27.8R_⊙(assuming a single-temperature atmosphere), and a subgiant companion withT_eff= 6000 K,R_comp= 2.7R_⊙, orT_eff= 5270 K,R_comp= 4.2R_⊙using models with one-tenth or one-third solar metallicity, respectively, logg= 3.0, extinctionE_B−V= 0.50 ± 0.2, adopting the Data Release 3 Gaia distanceD= 2463 ± 120 pc. No FUV data existed prior to our programs. STIS spectra give an upper limit of 10⁻¹⁷erg cm⁻²s⁻¹Å⁻¹shortwards of 2300 Å; an upper limit of ≳25.7 ABmag was obtained in two UVIT FUV broad bands. The nondetection of FUV flux rules out a compact companion such as a hot white dwarf. The STIS spectrum shows strong Mgiiλ2800 Å emission, typical of chromospherically active RGs. The masses inferred by comparison with evolutionary tracks, ∼1M_⊙for the RG and between 1.1 and 1.6M_⊙for the subgiant companion, suggest past mass transfer, although the RG currently does not fill its Roche lobe. WFC3 imaging in F218W, F275W, F336W, F475W, and F606W shows an unresolved source in all filters. 

We introduce the rapidly emerging field of multi-messenger gravitational lensing—the discovery and science of gravitationally lensed phenomena in the distant universe through the combination of multiple messengers. This is framed by gravitational lensing phenomenology that has grown since the first discoveries in the twentieth century, messengers that span 30 orders of magnitude in energy from high-energy neutrinos to gravitational waves, and powerful ‘survey facilities’ that are capable of continually scanning the sky for transient and variable sources. Within this context, the main focus is on discoveries and science that are feasible in the next 5–10 years with current and imminent technology including the LIGO–Virgo–KAGRA network of gravitational wave detectors, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and contemporaneous gamma/X-ray satellites and radio surveys. The scientific impact of even one multi-messenger gravitational lensing discovery will be transformational and reach across fundamental physics, cosmology and astrophysics. We describe these scientific opportunities and the key challenges along the path to achieving them. This article therefore describes the consensus that emerged at the eponymous Theo Murphy meeting in March 2024, and also serves as an introduction to this Theo Murphy meeting issue. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue ‘Multi-messenger gravitational lensing (Part 2)’. 

General relativity (GR) has proven to be a highly successful theory of gravity since its inception. The theory has thrivingly passed numerous experimental tests, predominantly in weak gravity, low relative speeds, and linear regimes, but also in the strong-field and very low-speed regimes with binary pulsars. Observable gravitational waves (GWs) originate from regions of spacetime where gravity is extremely strong, making them a unique tool for testing GR, in previously inaccessible regions of large curvature, relativistic speeds, and strong gravity. Since their first detection, GWs have been extensively used to test GR, but no deviations have been found so far. Given GR’s tremendous success in explaining current astronomical observations and laboratory experiments, accepting any deviation from it requires a very high level of statistical confidence and consistency of the deviation across GW sources. In this paper, we compile a comprehensive list of potential causes that can lead to a false identification of a GR violation in standard tests of GR on data from current and future ground-based GW detectors. These causes include detector noise, signal overlaps, gaps in the data, detector calibration, source model inaccuracy, missing physics in the source and in the underlying environment model, source misidentification, and mismodeling of the astrophysical population. We also provide a rough estimate of when each of these causes will become important for tests of GR for different detector sensitivities. We argue that each of these causes should be thoroughly investigated, quantified, and ruled out before claiming a GR violation in GW observations.