B. Famaey

The wobbly Galaxy: kinematics north and south with RAVE red-clump giants

The RAdial Velocity Experiment survey, combined with proper motions and distance estimates, can be used to study in detail stellar kinematics in the extended solar neighbourhood (solar suburb). Using 72 365 red-clump stars, we examine the mean velocity components in 3D between 6 <R <10 kpc and -2 <Z <2 kpc, concentrating on north-south differences. Simple parametric fits to the (R, Z) trends for Vφ and the velocity dispersions are presented. We confirm the recently discovered gradient in mean Galactocentric radial velocity, VR, finding that the gradient is marked below the plane (δ/δR = -8 km s-1 kpc-1 for Z <0, vanishing to zero above the plane), with a Z gradient thus also present. The vertical velocity, VZ, also shows clear, large-amplitude (|VZ| = 17 km s-1) structure, with indications of a rarefaction-compression pattern, suggestive of wave-like behaviour. We perform a rigorous error analysis, tracing sources of both systematic and random errors. We confirm the north-south differences in VR and VZ along the line of sight, with the VR estimated independent of the proper motions. The complex three-dimensional structure of velocity space presents challenges for future modelling of the Galactic disc, with the Galactic bar, spiral arms and excitation of wave-like structures all probably playing a role.

Radial migration does little for Galactic disc thickening

Non-axisymmetric components, such as spirals and central bars, play a major role in shaping galactic discs. An important aspect of the disc secular evolution driven by these perturbers is the radial migration of stars. It has been suggested recently that migration can populate a thick-disc component from inner-disc stars with high vertical energies. Since this has never been demonstrated in simulations, we study in detail the effect of radial migration on the disc velocity dispersion and disc thickness, by separating simulated stars into migrators and non-migrators. We apply this method to three isolated barred Tree-SPH N-body galaxies with strong radial migration. Contrary to expectations, we find that as stellar samples migrate, on the average, their velocity dispersion change (by as much as 50%) in such a way as to approximately match the non-migrating population at the radius at which they arrive. We show that, in fact, migrators suppress heating in parts of the disc. To confirm the validity of our findings, we also apply our technique to three cosmological re-simulations, which use a completely different simulation scheme and, remarkably, find very similar results. We believe the inability of migration to thicken discs is a fundamental property of internal disc evolution, irrespective of the migration mechanism at work. We explain this with the approximate conservation of the (average) vertical and radial actions rather than the energy. This “action mixing” can be used to constrain the migration rate in the Milky Way: estimates of the average vertical action in observations for different populations of stars should reveal flattening with radius for older groups of stars.

Evolution of galactic discs: multiple patterns, radial migration, and disc outskirts

We investigate the evolution of galactic disks in N-body Tree-SPH simulations. We find that disks, initially truncated a t three scalelengths, can triple their radial extent, solely driven by se cular evolution. At the same time, the initial radial metall icity gradients are flattened and even reversed in the outer disks. Both Type I (si ngle exponential) and Type II (down-bending) observed disk surfacebrightness profiles can be explained by our findings. We show t hat profiles with breaks beyond the bar’s outer Lindblad reso nance, at present only explained as the effect of star-formation threshold, can occur even if no star fo rmation is considered. We explain these results with the strong angular momentum outward transfer, resulting from torques and radial migration associated with multiple patterns, such as central bars and spiral waves of different multiplicity. We find that even for stars ending up on co ld orbits, the changes in angular momentum exhibit complex structure as a function of radius, unlike the expected effect of transient spirals alone. We show that the bars in all of our simulations are the most effective drivers of radial migration through their corotatio n resonance, throughout the 3 Gyr of evolution studied. Focussing on one of our models, we find evidence for non-linear coupling among m = 1, 2, 3 and 4 density waves, where m is the pattern multiplicity. In this way the waves involved c onspire to carry the energy and angular momentum extracted by the first mode from the inner parts of the disk muc h farther out than a single mode could. We suggest that the naturally occurring larger resonance widths at galactic radii beyond four scale-lengths may have profound consequences on the formation and location of breaks in disk density profiles, provided spiral s are present at such large distances. We also consider the effect of gas inflow and show that when in-plane smooth gas accretion of∼ 5 M⊙/yr is included, the outer disks become more unstable, leading to a strong increase in the stellar velocity dispersion. This, i n turn, causes the formation of a Type III (up-bending) profil e in the old stellar population. We propose that observations of Type III surface brightness profiles, combined with an up-turn in the stella r velocity dispersions beyond the disk break, could be a signature of ongoing gas-accretion. The results of this study suggest that disk outskirts comprised of stars migrated from the inner disk would have relatively large radial velocity dispersions (> 30 km/s at 6 scale-lengths for Milky Way-size systems), and significant thickness when seen edge-on.

Velocity dispersion around ellipticals in MOND

We investigate how different models that have been proposed for solving the dark matter problem can fit the velocity dispersion observed around elliptical galaxies, on either a small scale (∼20 kpc) with stellar tracers, such as planetary nebulae, or large scale (∼200 kpc) with satellite galaxies as tracers. Predictions of Newtonian gravity, either containing pure baryonic matter, or embedded in massive cold dark matter (CDM) haloes, are compared with predictions of the modified gravity of MOND. The standard CDM model has problems on a small scale, and the Newtonian pure baryonic model has difficulties on a large scale, while a fit with MOND is possible on both scales.

A new stellar chemo-kinematic relation reveals the merger history of the milky way disk

The velocity dispersions of stars near the Sun are known to increase with stellar age, but age can be difficult to determine, so a proxy like the abundance of α elements (e.g., Mg) with respect to iron, [α/Fe], is used. Here we report an unexpected behavior found in the velocity dispersion of a sample of giant stars from the Radial Velocity Experiment survey with high-quality chemical and kinematic information, in that it decreases strongly for stars with [Mg/Fe] > 0.4 dex (i.e., those that formed in the first gigayear of the Galaxys life). These findings can be explained by perturbations from massive mergers in the early universe, which have affected the outer parts of the disk more strongly, and the subsequent radial migration of stars with cooler kinematics from the inner disk. Similar reversed trends in velocity dispersion are also found for different metallicity subpopulations. Our results suggest that the Milky Way disk merger history can be recovered by relating the observed chemo-kinematic relations to the properties of past merger events.

The gaia-ESO survey: Characterisation of the [α/Fe] sequences in the Milky Way discs

Context. High-resolution spectroscopic surveys of stars indicate that the Milky Way thin and thick discs follow different paths in the chemical space defined by [alpha/Fe] vs. [Fe/H], possibly suggesting different formation mechanisms for each of these structures. Aims. We investigate, using the Gaia-ESO Survey internal Data-Release 2, the properties of the double sequence of the Milky Way discs, which are defined chemically as the high-alpha and low-alpha populations. We discuss their compatibility with discs defined by other means, such as metallicity, kinematics, or positions. Methods. This investigation uses two different approaches: in velocity space, for stars located in the extended solar neighbourhood; and, in chemical space, for stars at different ranges of Galactocentric radii and heights from the Galactic mid-plane. The separation we find in velocity space allows us to investigate, using a novel approach, the extent of metallicity of each of the two chemical sequences, without making any assumption about the shape of their metallicity distribution functions. Then, using the separation in chemical space, adopting the magnesium abundance as a tracer of the alpha-elements, we characterise the spatial variation of the slopes of the [alpha/Fe] [Fe/H] sequences for the thick and thin discs and the way in which the relative proportions of the two discs change across the Galaxy. Results. We find that the thick disc, defined as the stars tracing the high-alpha sequence, extends up to super-solar metallicities ([Fe/H] approximate to + 0.2 dex), and the thin disc, defined as the stars tracing the low-alpha sequence, extends at least down to [Fe/H] approximate to 0.8 dex, with hints pointing towards even lower values. Radial and vertical gradients in alpha-abundances are found for the thin disc, with mild spatial variations in its [alpha/Fe] [Fe/H] paths, whereas for the thick disc we do not detect any spatial variations of this kind. This is in agreement with results obtained recently from other high-resolution spectroscopic surveys. Conclusions. The small variations in the spatial [alpha/Fe] [Fe/H] paths of the thin disc do not allow us to distinguish between formation models of this structure. On the other hand, the lack of radial gradients and [alpha/Fe] [Fe/H] variations for the thick disc indicate that the mechanism responsible for the mixing of metals in the young Galaxy (e.g. radial stellar migration or turbulent gaseous disc) was more efficient before the (present) thin disc started forming.

Weighing the local dark matter with RAVE red clump stars

We determine the Galactic potential in the solar neigbourhood from RAVE observations. We select red clump stars for which accurate distances, radial velocities, and metallicities have been measured. Combined with data from the 2MASS and UCAC catalogues, we build a sample of 4600 red clump stars within a cylinder of 500 pc radius oriented in the direction of the South Galactic Pole, in the range of 200 pc to 2000 pc distances. We deduce the vertical force and the total mass density distribution up to 2 kpc away from the Galactic plane by fitting a distribution function depending explicitly on three isolating integrals of the motion in a separable potential locally representing the Galactic one with four free parameters. Because of the deep extension of our sample, we can determine nearly independently the dark matter mass density and the baryonic disc surface mass density. We find (i) at 1kpc Kz/(2piG) = 68.5 pm 1.0 Msun/pc2, and (ii) at 2 kpc Kz/(2piG) = 96.9 pm 2.2 Msun/pc2. Assuming the solar Galactic radius at R0 = 8.5 kpc, we deduce the local dark matter density rhoDM (z=0) = 0.0143 pm 0.0011Msun pc3 = 0.542 pm 0.042 Gev/cm3 and the baryonic surface mass density Sigma = 44.4 pm 4.1 Msun/pc2 . Our results are in agreement with previously published Kz determinations up to 1 kpc, while the extension to 2 kpc shows some evidence for an unexpectedly large amount of dark matter. A flattening of the dark halo of order 0.8 can produce such a high local density in combination with a circular velocity of 240 km/s . Another explanation, allowing for a lower circular velocity, could be the presence of a secondary dark component, a very thick disc resulting either from the deposit of dark matter from the accretion of multiple small dwarf galaxies, or from the presence of an effective phantom thick disc in the context of effective galactic-scale modifications of gravity.

Polar ring galaxies as tests of gravity

Polar ring galaxies are ideal objects with which to study the three-dimensional shapes of galactic gravitational potentials since two rotation curves can be measured in two perpendicular planes. Observational studies have uncovered systematically larger rotation velocities in the extended polar rings than in the associated host galaxies. In the dark matter context, this can only be explained through dark haloes that are systematically flattened along the polar rings. Here, we point out that these objects can also be used as very effective tests of gravity theories, such as those based on Milgromian dynamics (also known as Modified Newtonian Dynamics or MOND). We run a set of polar ring models using both Milgromian and Newtonian dynamics to predict the expected shapes of the rotation curves in both planes, varying the total mass of the system, the mass of the ring with respect to the host and the size of the hole at the centre of the ring. We find that Milgromian dynamics not only naturally leads to rotation velocities being typically higher in the extended polar rings than in the hosts, as would be the case in Newtonian dynamics without dark matter, but that it also gets the shape and amplitude of velocities correct. Milgromian dynamics thus adequately explains this particular property of polar ring galaxies.

Quasi integral of motion for axisymmetric potentials

We present an estimate of the third integral of motion for axisymmetric three-dimensional potentials. This estimate is based on a Staeckel approximation and is explicitly written as a function of the potential. We tested this scheme for the Besancon Galactic model and two other disc-halo models and find that orbits of disc stars have an accurately conserved third quasi integral. nThe accuracy ranges from of 0.1% to 1% for heights varying from z = 0~kpc to z= 6 kpc and Galactocentric radii R from 5 to 15kpc. nWe also tested the usefulness of this quasi integral in analytic distribution functions of disc stellar populations: we show that the distribution function remains approximately stationary and that it allows to recover the potential and forces by applying Jeans equations to its moments.

The transverse velocity of the Andromeda system, derived from the M31 satellite population

We present a dynamical measurement of the tangential motion of the Andromeda system, the ensemble consisting of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and its satellites. The system is modelled as a structure with cosmologically-motivated velocity dispersion and density profiles, and we show that our method works well when tested using the most massive substructures in high-resolution Lambda Cold Dark Matter simulations. Applied to the sample of 40 currently-known galaxies of this system, we find a value for the transverse velocity of 164.4 +/- 61.8 km/s (v_East = -111.5 +/- 70.2 km/s and v_North = 99.4 +/- 60.0 km/s), significantly higher than previous estimates of the proper motion of M31 itself. This result has significant implications on estimates of the mass of the Local Group, as well as on its past and future history.