GNIRS-DQS: A Gemini Near Infrared Spectrograph Distant Quasar Survey

BROTHERTON, MICHAEL S; BRANDT, W. NIEL ; GALLAGHER, SARAH ; LIRA, PAULINA; RICHARDS, GORDON T.; SHEN, YUE ; WILLS, BEVERLEY J.; SHEMMER, OHAD ; BOROSON, TODD A.; FERRERO, GABRIEL; HENNAWI, JOSEPH F.; PLOTKIN, RICHARD ; SCHNEIDER, DONALD P.; WILLOTT, CHRIS J. ; MATTHEWS, BRANDON; ANDRUCHOW, ILEANA; CELLONE, SERGIO; GREEN, RICHARD F. ; MYERS, ADAM D.; RUNNOE, JESSIE; STRAUSS, MICHAEL A.

Denver

Congreso; 232nd American Astronomical Society Meeting; 2018

American Astronomical Society

We describe an ongoing three-year Gemini survey, launched in 2017, that will obtain near-infrared spectroscopy of 416 Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) quasars between redshifts of 1.5 and 3.5 in the ~1.0-2.5 μm band. These spectra will cover critical diagnostic emission lines, such as Mg II, Hβ, and [O III], in each source. This project will more than double the existing inventory of near-infrared spectra of luminous quasars at these redshifts, including the era of fast quasar growth. Additional rest frame ultraviolet coverage of at least the C IV emission line is provided by the SDSS spectrum of each source. We will utilize the spectroscopic inventory to determine the most accurate and precise quasar black hole masses, accretion rates, and redshifts, and use the results to derive improved prescriptions for UV-based proxies for these parameters. The improved redshifts will establish velocities of quasar outflows that interact with the host galaxies, and will help constrain how imprecise distance estimates bias quasar clustering measurements. Furthermore, our measurements will facilitate a more complete understanding of how the rest-frame UV-optical spectral properties depend on redshift and luminosity, and test whether the physical properties of the quasar central engine evolve over cosmic time. We will make our data immediately available to the public, provide reduced spectra via a dedicated website, and produce a catalog of measurements and fundamental quasar properties.