Dark branches of immortal stars at the Galactic Center

We show that stars in the inner parsec of the Milky Way can be significantly affected by dark matter annihilation, producing population-level effects that are visible in a Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagram. We establish the dark HR diagram, where stars lie on a new stable with similar luminosities, but lower temperatures, than the standard main sequence. The dark matter density in these stars continuously replenishes, granting these stars immortality and solving multiple stellar anomalies. Upcoming telescopes could detect the dark main sequence, offering a new dark matter discovery avenue.

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Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Physical review. D/Physical review. D.
Published
2025-07-18
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevd.112.023028
Citations
6
Primary Topic
Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
6.93

Funders

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article

Dark branches of immortal stars at the Galactic Center

Tim Linden, Isabelle John, Rebecca K. Leane
6 citations
Physical review. D/Physical review. D.
Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies
6.93
article

Dark branches of immortal stars at the Galactic Center

Tim Linden, Isabelle John, Rebecca K. Leane
article en
6 citations

Abstract

We show that stars in the inner parsec of the Milky Way can be significantly affected by dark matter annihilation, producing population-level effects that are visible in a Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagram. We establish the dark HR diagram, where stars lie on a new stable with similar luminosities, but lower temperatures, than the standard main sequence. The dark matter density in these stars continuously replenishes, granting these stars immortality and solving multiple stellar anomalies. Upcoming telescopes could detect the dark main sequence, offering a new dark matter discovery avenue.

Physical review. D/Physical review. D.Vol. 112(2)
Stockholm University (SE), SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (US), Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (US)
U.S. Department of Energy, Stanford University, Swedish National Space Agency, Vetenskapsrådet
Openalex Percentile: Top 3%
Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies
6.93
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