New tools for studying planarity in galaxy satellite systems: Milky Way satellite planes are consistent with ΛCDM
ABSTRACT We introduce a new concept – termed ‘planarity’ – which aims to quantify planar structure in galaxy satellite systems without recourse to the number or thickness of planes. We use positions and velocities from the Gaia EDR3 to measure planarity in Milky Way (MW) satellites and the extent to which planes within the MW system are kinematically supported. We show that the position vectors of the MW satellites exhibit strong planarity but the velocity vectors do not, and that kinematic coherence cannot, therefore, be confirmed from current observational data. We then apply our methodology to NewHorizon, a high-resolution cosmological simulation, to compare satellite planarity in MW-like galaxies in a Lambda cold dark matter ($\rm {\Lambda CDM}$)-based model to that in the MW satellite data. We demonstrate that kinematically supported planes are common in the simulation and that the observed planarity of MW satellites is not in tension with the standard $\rm {\Lambda CDM}$ paradigm.
Authors
- Joseph Silk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1566-8148)
- Julien Devriendt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8140-0422)
- Christophe Pichon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0695-6735)
- Sugata Kaviraj (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5601-575X)
- Sébastien Peirani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6902-2898)
- Sukyoung K. Yi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4556-2619)
- Emir Uzeirbegovic (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2457-8080)
- R. A. JACKSON (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3254-4873)
- Yohan Dubois (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0225-6387)
- Katarina Kraljic (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6180-0245)
- Garreth Martin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2939-8668)
Institutions
- Korea Institute for Advanced Study (KR)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- University of Hertfordshire (GB)
- University of Nottingham (GB)
- Johns Hopkins University (US)
- Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (JP)
- Yonsei University (KR)
- University of Victoria (CA)
- Aix-Marseille Université (FR)
- Johns Hopkins Medicine (US)
- Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris (FR)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- University of Oxford (GB)
- Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement (FR)
- University of Baltimore (US)
- The University of Tokyo (JP)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Published
- 2024-11-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stae2632
- Citations
- 6
- Primary Topic
- Astronomy and Astrophysical Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.04
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- European Space Agency
- University of Hertfordshire
- National Research Foundation
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information
- Grand Équipement National De Calcul Intensif
- Korea Research Environment Open Network
- Science and Technology Facilities Council