Dispersion in the Hubble-Lema\^(i)tre constant measurements from gravitational clustering
Pith reviewed 2026-05-23 22:53 UTC · model grok-4.3
The pith
Peculiar velocities from gravitational clustering cause dispersion in local H0 estimates exceeding quoted statistical errors below 135 Mpc/h.
A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.
Core claim
Using N-body simulations, the distribution of estimated H0 values for observers located in dark matter halos exhibits large dispersion at small scales that diminishes as separations increase, reaching the quoted statistical error levels of Planck and SH0ES measurements well beyond ∼135 Mpc/h and ∼220 Mpc/h respectively. Deviations more significant than 5% of the global values occur frequently at scales up to 40 Mpc/h, and the cumulative effect in mock measurements from Milky Way-sized halos produces a large tail in the H0 distribution that depends on the lowest distance used.
What carries the argument
The distribution of H0 estimates derived from recession velocities that include peculiar motions, sampled by placing observers inside dark matter halos in simulated large-scale structure.
If this is right
- Measurements at smaller scales are susceptible to errors arising from peculiar motions.
- This error can propagate to measurements at larger scales in the distance ladder.
- Negative correlation exists between the local over-density around an observer and the deviation of the local H0 from the global value.
- Deviations of a few percent from the global value cannot be ruled out in measurements from Milky Way-sized halos.
Where Pith is reading between the lines
- Local H0 measurements may need to be restricted to scales larger than 200 Mpc/h to minimize peculiar velocity effects.
- The observed Hubble tension could partly arise from such dispersion if many local measurements are affected by clustering.
- Future surveys could test this by measuring the variance in H0 as a function of scale.
Load-bearing premise
That the N-body simulations accurately reproduce the peculiar velocity field experienced by real galaxies and that placing observers inside dark matter halos is a faithful proxy for the locations of actual H0 observers.
What would settle it
Direct measurement of the scale-dependent variance in H0 estimates from real galaxy catalogs at separations from 10 to 300 Mpc/h, compared against the simulated distribution width.
Figures
read the original abstract
Measurements of the Hubble-Lema\^{i}tre constant ($H_0$) require us to estimate the distance and recession velocity of galaxies independently. Gravitational clustering that leads to the formation of galaxies and the large scale structure leaves its imprints in the form of peculiar velocities of galaxies. In general, it is not possible to disentangle the peculiar velocity component from the recession velocities of galaxies, and this introduces an uncertainty in the determination of $H_0$. Using N-body simulations, we quantify the impact of peculiar velocities on the $H_0$ estimation. We consider observers to be located in dark matter halos and compute the distribution of the estimated value of $H_0$ across all such observers. We find that the dispersion of this distribution is large at small scales, and it diminishes as we go to large separations, reaching the level of the quoted statistical error in Planck and SH0ES measurements well beyond $\sim$135 Mpc/h and $\sim$220 Mpc/h, respectively. Measurements at smaller scales are susceptible to errors arising from peculiar motions, and this error can propagate to measurements at larger scales in the distance ladder. Notably, we observe a negative correlation between the local over-density around an observer and the deviation of the local and the global value of $H_0$. We show that deviations more significant than 5% of the global values can be encountered frequently at scales of up to 40 Mpc/h, and this is considerably larger than the statistical errors on local estimates. We also analyse the cumulative effect of such errors on mock measurements of $H_0$ as measured from Milky Way-sized halos. We find that this error is sensitive to the lowest distance at which we use measurements. The distribution of $H_0$ in mock measurements has a large tail, and deviations of a few percent from the global value cannot be ruled out.
Editorial analysis
A structured set of objections, weighed in public.
Referee Report
Summary. The paper uses N-body simulations to quantify the dispersion in local estimates of the Hubble-Lemaître constant (H0) arising from peculiar velocities. Observers are placed inside dark matter halos, local H0 is computed from the simulated velocity field, and the resulting distribution is analyzed as a function of scale. The central claims are that dispersion decreases with separation, reaching the statistical error levels quoted by Planck and SH0ES beyond ~135 Mpc/h and ~220 Mpc/h respectively; deviations >5% occur frequently up to 40 Mpc/h; a negative correlation exists between local over-density and H0 deviation; and mock distance-ladder measurements from Milky Way-sized halos show a large tail sensitive to the minimum distance used.
Significance. If the numerical results hold, the work supplies concrete, simulation-derived thresholds for the scale at which peculiar-velocity systematics become sub-dominant to current statistical errors on H0. The explicit reporting of dispersion values, the density–H0 correlation, and the cumulative effect on mock ladder measurements provides a falsifiable benchmark that can be tested with future peculiar-velocity surveys. The approach is free of circularity with observed H0 data.
major comments (2)
- [Methods] Methods section: the simulation parameters (box size, particle number, force resolution, halo finder, and exact procedure for subtracting the global Hubble flow from the line-of-sight velocity) are not reported. These quantities directly determine the peculiar-velocity power spectrum and therefore set the numerical values of the dispersion thresholds (135 Mpc/h, 220 Mpc/h, 40 Mpc/h) that constitute the paper’s headline results.
- [Observer placement and velocity estimation] Observer placement and velocity estimation section: the choice to locate observers exclusively inside dark-matter halos is adopted without any reported comparison to observational constraints on the velocity field (e.g., from peculiar-velocity surveys) or to alternative proxies (luminosity-weighted or star-forming galaxies). Because the reported distribution of local H0 and the negative density–H0 correlation rest on this modeling choice, the absence of such validation is load-bearing for the central claim.
minor comments (1)
- [Abstract] The abstract and text repeatedly refer to “the quoted statistical error in Planck and SH0ES measurements” without citing the specific error values or papers used for comparison; adding these references would improve clarity.
Simulated Author's Rebuttal
We thank the referee for the constructive and detailed report. The two major comments identify genuine gaps in the reporting of methods and justification of modeling choices. We address each below and will revise the manuscript to incorporate the requested information.
read point-by-point responses
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Referee: [Methods] Methods section: the simulation parameters (box size, particle number, force resolution, halo finder, and exact procedure for subtracting the global Hubble flow from the line-of-sight velocity) are not reported. These quantities directly determine the peculiar-velocity power spectrum and therefore set the numerical values of the dispersion thresholds (135 Mpc/h, 220 Mpc/h, 40 Mpc/h) that constitute the paper’s headline results.
Authors: We agree that these parameters were omitted from the original Methods section. In the revised manuscript we will add a dedicated subsection that reports the simulation box size, particle number, force resolution, halo finder algorithm, and the precise procedure used to subtract the global Hubble flow from the line-of-sight peculiar velocities. This will make the numerical values of the reported dispersion thresholds fully reproducible. revision: yes
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Referee: [Observer placement and velocity estimation] Observer placement and velocity estimation section: the choice to locate observers exclusively inside dark-matter halos is adopted without any reported comparison to observational constraints on the velocity field (e.g., from peculiar-velocity surveys) or to alternative proxies (luminosity-weighted or star-forming galaxies). Because the reported distribution of local H0 and the negative density–H0 correlation rest on this modeling choice, the absence of such validation is load-bearing for the central claim.
Authors: We acknowledge that the original text provides no explicit comparison to peculiar-velocity survey data or alternative galaxy proxies. In the revision we will expand the relevant section to (i) state the physical motivation for placing observers in halos (they trace the locations of galaxies), (ii) discuss possible biases relative to luminosity- or star-formation-weighted tracers, and (iii) add a brief comparison, where feasible, to existing peculiar-velocity catalogs or note the limitation if additional analysis is required. We view this as a necessary clarification rather than a fundamental change to the simulation results. revision: yes
Circularity Check
No significant circularity: direct simulation measurements
full rationale
The paper's central results follow from placing observers inside dark-matter halos in N-body runs and directly computing local recession velocities plus peculiar velocities to obtain a distribution of estimated H0 values; the global H0 is an input parameter of the simulation, and the reported scale-dependent dispersion, density-H0 correlation, and mock Milky-Way measurements are obtained by straightforward averaging and binning over the simulated observers without any parameter fitting to external H0 data, without redefinition of quantities in terms of the target result, and without load-bearing self-citations. All steps remain self-contained computations inside the simulated volume.
Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger
axioms (1)
- domain assumption Standard Lambda-CDM cosmology and Newtonian gravity govern the N-body evolution
Reference graph
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discussion (0)
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