Weak Lensing from Space. III. Cosmological Parameters

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Abstract
Weak gravitational lensing provides a unique method to directly map the dark matter in the universe and measure cosmological parameters. Current weak-lensing surveys are limited by the atmospheric seeing from the ground and by the small fields of view of existing space telescopes. We study how a future wide-field space telescope can measure the lensing power spectrum and skewness and thus set constraints on cosmological parameters. The lensing sensitivity was calculated using detailed image simulations and instrumental specifications studied in earlier papers in this series. For instance, the planned SuperNova/Acceleration Probe (SNAP) mission will be able to measure the matter density parameter Ωm and the dark energy equation-of-state parameter w with precisions comparable and nearly orthogonal to those derived with SNAP from supernovae. The constraints degrade by a factor of about 2 if redshift tomography is not used but are little affected if only the skewness is dropped. We also study how the constraints on these parameters depend on the survey geometry and define an optimal observing strategy.

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