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arxiv: 2604.24200 · v1 · submitted 2026-04-27 · 🌌 astro-ph.CO · astro-ph.GA

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The Three Hundred project: cosmic web identification from 2D gas and Compton-y maps of galaxy clusters outskirts

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Pith reviewed 2026-05-08 01:47 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification 🌌 astro-ph.CO astro-ph.GA
keywords cosmic webgalaxy clustersfilamentsSunyaev-Zel'dovich effectsimulationscluster outskirtsDisPerSEprojection effects
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The pith

Two-dimensional gas and Compton-y maps recover the three-dimensional cosmic web filaments around galaxy clusters.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The paper tests how well the filamentary cosmic web around galaxy clusters can be reconstructed from two-dimensional projections of gas and Sunyaev-Zel'dovich maps. It applies the DisPerSE finder to mock 2D data from The Three Hundred simulations and compares the extracted skeletons to the true three-dimensional networks projected along the line of sight. The 2D skeletons match the projected 3D ones in location of critical points and filament spines, with a median separation of about 0.22 h^{-1} Mpc, though they slightly underestimate connectivity. Gas and SZ-derived networks agree spatially at a median distance of 0.24 h^{-1} Mpc, and filaments contain roughly 80 percent of the integrated Compton-Y signal outside the clusters.

Core claim

The skeletons extracted from 2D maps provide good representations of the underlying 3D ones, both in terms of critical points and filaments. The median distance between the spines of the 2D and projected 3D networks is approximately 0.22 h^{-1} Mpc, although the connectivity derived from the 2D networks is slightly underestimated. The gas and SZ networks show good spatial agreement with a median distance of approximately 0.24 h^{-1} Mpc. Gas outside galaxy clusters is preferentially located in filamentary structures, which contribute about 80 percent of the integrated Compton-Y parameter of clusters' outskirts.

What carries the argument

The DisPerSE filament finder applied to projected 2D gas density maps and Compton-y maps from simulated galaxy cluster outskirts.

If this is right

  • Two-dimensional observations can trace the locations of filaments connected to clusters with only modest loss of connectivity information.
  • The Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect serves as a reliable tracer of the same filamentary network identified in the gas density.
  • Filaments dominate the gas and SZ signal in cluster outskirts, accounting for roughly 80 percent of the integrated Compton-Y parameter.

Where Pith is reading between the lines

These are editorial extensions of the paper, not claims the author makes directly.

  • Observers could apply the same 2D method to real SZ telescope maps to map filaments feeding clusters without requiring full three-dimensional data.
  • The approach may help quantify the fraction of baryons locked in the cosmic web surrounding clusters in ongoing surveys.
  • Testing the method on other simulated tracers such as X-ray emission or galaxy positions would show how general the result is.

Load-bearing premise

The mock observational data from the simulations accurately capture projection effects and the tracer properties of gas and SZ without introducing unaccounted biases.

What would settle it

A comparison in which the median spine distance between 2D and projected 3D networks exceeds 0.5 h^{-1} Mpc or the filament contribution to the integrated Compton-Y drops below 60 percent.

Figures

Figures reproduced from arXiv: 2604.24200 by Antonio Ferragamo, Daniel de Andr\'es, Gustavo Yepes, Marco De Petris, Rapha\"el Wicker, Sara Santoni, Weiguang Cui.

Figure 1
Figure 1. Figure 1: The filament network of region 1 of The Three Hundred extracted from the 2D gas density map is plotted in light yellow. The 3D network of the same region, projected onto the plane, is plotted in black lines. The red stars indicate the projected ahf haloes of the region. 3.2. Critical point catalogue We first assess the reliability of the extracted cosmic web net￾work by analysing the accuracy of the DisPer… view at source ↗
Figure 2
Figure 2. Figure 2: Probability density function (top panel) and cumulative view at source ↗
Figure 3
Figure 3. Figure 3: Connectivity values of The Three Hundred clusters, esti￾mated from 2D projected gas maps, plotted in light blue. These values are compared to those estimated from 3D grids of the same simulations. See the text for the detailed explanation of the error bars and shaded area of the 2D connectivity. 4.1. SZ filamentary network extraction The SZ filamentary networks are identified from mock Compton-y maps of th… view at source ↗
Figure 4
Figure 4. Figure 4: Top: PDF of distances between the SZ and 2D gas skele view at source ↗
Figure 5
Figure 5. Figure 5: Compton-y map of region 1 of The Three Hundred. The pixels within a radius of 6 pixels from the spine of a filament are highlighted. The central grey circle represents the 2R500 mask we use in the analysis. The dotted circles are concentric apertures with increasing distance from the cluster centre equal to R500. For each cluster, we compute the median Compton-y signal in the annular rings nR500 ≤ R < (n +… view at source ↗
Figure 6
Figure 6. Figure 6: In solid green, the median Compton-y signal inside the filaments in concentric annular rings of R500 radius, averaged over all The Three Hundred regions. In dashed violet, the signal outside filaments. For both profiles, the shaded areas are the 16th and 84th percentiles, averages on the 324 clusters. In maroon, the total profile, taking both filaments and outside matter into account. the cluster centre. T… view at source ↗
Figure 7
Figure 7. Figure 7: The median ffil fraction, averaged over the 324 The Three Hundred simulations, of the Compton-Y parameter plotted as a solid green line, with the shaded area being the 16th and 84th percentiles. The dashed grey line is a random test, see the text for details. Nevertheless, the filaments’ contribution to the Compton￾Y parameter, computed in concentric annular rings between [2 − 3]R500 and [2 − 10]R500, is e… view at source ↗
Figure 8
Figure 8. Figure 8: The Y5R500 /Y500 ratio derived from The Three Hundred Compton-y maps, plotted in red. Moreover, the ratios estimated from the pressure profiles parameters of the REXCESS cata￾logue (Arnaud et al. 2010), for the full sample and the cool-core and morphologically disturbed subsamples, are plotted in green. Labelled as P13, the ratio inferred from the Planck pressure pro￾files (Planck Collaboration et al. 2013… view at source ↗
read the original abstract

Galaxy clusters are located at the nodes of the filamentary network known as the cosmic web. A more comprehensive understanding of galaxy clusters can be achieved by considering their environment, in particular, the filamentary structures to which they are connected. In this work, we aim to assess the reliability of the cosmic web reconstruction from mock observational data. In particular, we aim to quantify the effects of the 2D projection relative to the underlying 3D network and the impact of using the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect as a tracer of the cosmic web. We reconstruct the filamentary networks in the outskirts of The Three Hundred simulated clusters with the filament finder DisPerSE. First, we extract the networks from the 2D gas distribution and evaluate their purity and completeness with respect to the 3D networks projected along the line of sight. We also compute the distances between the corresponding skeletons. Moreover, we identify filaments from simulated Compton-$y$ maps of the clusters at redshift $z=0$, and we compare them with the 2D gas network. The skeletons extracted from 2D maps provide good representations of the underlying 3D ones, both in terms of critical points and filaments. We find a median distance between the spines of the 2D and projected 3D networks of approximately $0.22 \, h^{-1}$ Mpc, although the connectivity derived from the 2D networks is slightly underestimated. We observe a good spatial agreement between the gas and SZ networks, with a median distance of $\approx 0.24 \, h^{-1}$ Mpc. Finally, we show that gas outside galaxy clusters is preferentially located in filamentary structures, which contribute $\sim 80\%$ of the integrated Compton-$Y$ parameter of clusters' outskirts.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Referee Report

2 major / 2 minor

Summary. The manuscript applies the DisPerSE filament finder to 2D gas density and Compton-y maps extracted from The Three Hundred hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy cluster outskirts. It compares the resulting 2D skeletons to line-of-sight projections of the underlying 3D networks, reports median spine distances of ~0.22 h^{-1} Mpc (2D vs. projected 3D) and ~0.24 h^{-1} Mpc (gas vs. SZ), notes slight underestimation of connectivity in 2D, and concludes that filamentary structures contain ~80% of the integrated Compton-Y signal outside the clusters.

Significance. If the quantitative agreement holds, the work supplies a controlled benchmark for using SZ and gas maps to trace the cosmic web around clusters, directly relevant to upcoming wide-field SZ surveys. The simulation-based design isolates projection effects by construction, and the reported median distances plus the 80% Compton-Y fraction offer falsifiable numbers that observers can test.

major comments (2)
  1. [§4] The purity and completeness assessment of 2D networks relative to projected 3D skeletons (abstract and §4) requires an explicit statement of the matching criterion (e.g., maximum distance for associating critical points or filaments) and the precise definition of the 'outskirts' radial range; without these, the reported median distances cannot be reproduced or compared to other studies.
  2. [§5] The claim that filaments contribute ∼80% of the integrated Compton-Y (abstract) is load-bearing for the final scientific conclusion; a robustness check against variations in the DisPerSE persistence threshold or the exact radial cut used to define cluster outskirts should be added, as small changes in these choices could alter the percentage substantially.
minor comments (2)
  1. Add a short table or paragraph summarizing the numerical values of purity, completeness, and connectivity differences rather than leaving them only in the text.
  2. [§3] Clarify whether the Compton-y maps include relativistic corrections or assume the non-relativistic limit, and state the assumed cosmology parameters used for the h^{-1} Mpc distances.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

2 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for their positive assessment and constructive comments. We address each major comment below and will revise the manuscript to incorporate the requested clarifications and checks.

read point-by-point responses
  1. Referee: [§4] The purity and completeness assessment of 2D networks relative to projected 3D skeletons (abstract and §4) requires an explicit statement of the matching criterion (e.g., maximum distance for associating critical points or filaments) and the precise definition of the 'outskirts' radial range; without these, the reported median distances cannot be reproduced or compared to other studies.

    Authors: We agree that explicit definitions are necessary for reproducibility. In the revised manuscript, we will add a clear statement in §4 specifying the matching criterion (maximum perpendicular distance threshold for associating 2D filaments and critical points with their projected 3D counterparts) and the precise radial range used to define the cluster outskirts (r > R_{200}, consistent with the simulation setup). These details will allow direct reproduction and comparison with other works. revision: yes

  2. Referee: [§5] The claim that filaments contribute ∼80% of the integrated Compton-Y (abstract) is load-bearing for the final scientific conclusion; a robustness check against variations in the DisPerSE persistence threshold or the exact radial cut used to define cluster outskirts should be added, as small changes in these choices could alter the percentage substantially.

    Authors: We recognize the centrality of this result to our conclusions. In the revised manuscript, we will perform and report robustness tests by varying the DisPerSE persistence threshold over a plausible range and adjusting the radial cut defining the outskirts. The outcomes of these checks will be added to §5 (or an appendix) to confirm the stability of the ∼80% contribution. revision: yes

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No significant circularity detected

full rationale

The paper's central results consist of direct quantitative comparisons (median spine distances, connectivity, and Compton-Y fractions) obtained by applying the identical DisPerSE filament finder to 2D gas/SZ projections versus projected 3D skeletons extracted from the same The Three Hundred hydrodynamical simulations. These metrics are computed outputs rather than fitted parameters or self-referential definitions. No load-bearing self-citations, uniqueness theorems, or ansatzes are invoked to justify the core claims; the validation framework is self-contained against the simulation ground truth.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 2 axioms · 0 invented entities

The work depends on the accuracy of the underlying N-body/hydro simulations and the filament detection algorithm parameters, which are taken from prior literature.

axioms (2)
  • domain assumption The DisPerSE filament finder applied to projected 2D maps faithfully recovers the 3D structure up to quantifiable projection effects.
    Central to the comparison of 2D and 3D networks.
  • domain assumption The simulated gas distribution and SZ effect in The Three Hundred clusters represent realistic mock observations.
    Basis for all mock data used.

pith-pipeline@v0.9.0 · 5669 in / 1399 out tokens · 88997 ms · 2026-05-08T01:47:37.953251+00:00 · methodology

discussion (0)

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