Search

We report the discovery of five white dwarf + ultracool dwarf systems identified as common proper motion wide binaries in the Gaia Catalogue of Nearby Stars. The discoveries include a white dwarf + L subdwarf binary, VVV 1256−62AB, a gravitationally bound system located 75.6 |$^{+1.9}_{-1.8}$|  pc away with a projected separation of 1375 |$^{+35}_{-33}$|  au. The primary is a cool DC white dwarf with a hydrogen dominated atmosphere, and has a total age of |$10.5^{+3.3}_{-2.1}$|  Gyr, based on white dwarf model fitting. The secondary is an L subdwarf with a metallicity of [M/H] = |$-0.72^{+0.08}_{-0.10}$| (i.e. [Fe/H] = |$-0.81\pm 0.10$|⁠) and |$T_{\rm eff}$| = 2298 |$^{+45}_{-43}$|  K based on atmospheric model fitting of its optical to near infrared spectrum, and likely has a mass just above the stellar/substellar boundary. The subsolar metallicity of the L subdwarf and the system's total space velocity of 406 km s−1 indicates membership in the Galactic halo, and it has a flat eccentric Galactic orbit passing within 1 kpc of the centre of the Milky Way every |$\sim$| 0.4 Gyr and extending to 15–31 kpc at apogal. VVV 1256−62B is the first L subdwarf to have a well-constrained age, making it an ideal benchmark of metal-poor ultracool dwarf atmospheres and evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents bounds on transient variations of fundamental constants, with typical timescales ranging from minutes to months, using clocks in space. The underlying phenomenology describing such transient variations relies on models for Dark Matter (DM) which suggest possible encounters of macroscopic compact objects with the Earth, due to the motion of the solar system in the galactic halo. If such compact objects possess an effective feeble interaction with the ordinary matter beyond the gravitational one, it may result in effective transient variations of fundamental constants. Such variations leave signatures on clocks onboard GNSS satellites. In this paper, we introduce a phenomenological study dedicated to the search for such DM transient objects using the network of passive hydrogen masers (H-Masers) onboard Galileo satellites. We first model the signature of transient variations of fundamental constants as a frequency modulation in the difference between two satellite clocks, considering the satellite trajectories relative to the transient event. Then, we present first results based on a fast analysis method, the maximum reach analysis. The main result is a significant extension of the discovery range for DM transients, with a sensitivity never achieved before. We investigate indeed the range of transient sizes from 10 5 to 10 9 kilometres, which, apart from indirect and model-dependent non-transient effects, has never been explored previously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we involve the galactic halo observational data to test the weak field General Relativity involving the cosmological constant. By using the data for 15 hydrogen (Hi) VLA super spirals and the Tully–Fisher relation, we obtain constraints for each galaxy. The results are consistent with previous results for spiral galaxies, as well as with the scaling relations for the halos, thus confirming the efficiency of the use of dark halo data and Tully–Fisher relation, including the baryonic Tully–Fisher index (BTFR), for testing modified gravity models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Voids-within-Voids-within-Voids project used dark-matter-only (DMO) simulations to study the abundance and structure of dark matter (DM) haloes over the full mass range populated in the standard Lambda cold dark matter cosmology. Here, we explore how baryonic effects modify these results for |$z=0$| halo masses in the range |$10^4$| – |$10^7~\mathrm{M_\odot }$|⁠ , below the threshold for galaxy formation. Our main study focuses on three simulations from identical initial conditions at |$z=127$|⁠ , one following DMO, one including non-radiative gas, and one additionally including the baryonic physics relevant in this halo mass range (cooling and photoheating). In the non-radiative simulation, above |$10^{5.5}~\mathrm{M_\odot }$|⁠ , halo abundance and internal structure are very similar to the DMO simulation, and the baryon to DM ratio is everywhere close to the cosmic value. At lower mass, this ratio drops and haloes are less concentrated and less massive in the non-radiative case. Test simulations at higher resolution show this to be mainly a resolution effect; the expected drop in baryon content due to residual pressure effects only becomes substantial for |$z=0$| haloes below |${\sim}10^{2.7}~\mathrm{M_\odot }$|⁠. However, gas is heated by reionization at |$z=6$| in our 'full physics' run, and this results in almost complete expulsion of gas from all haloes in our simulated mass range. This suppresses the halo mass function by |${\sim}30{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$|⁠ , lowers halo concentration, and consequently weakens the DM annihilation signal by |${\sim}40{-}60{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$|⁠. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel axially symmetric metric is proposed to solve the Einstein field equations. This provides an analytical solution within the matter in the equatorial plane for any galaxy density profile. The solution predicts the observed increase in rotational velocity up to the edge of the galaxy's bulge. However, beyond the bulge, the rotational velocity remains constant, which contradicts the observed peak curves. The existence of the Universe is then considered by approximating the gravitational fields within the galaxy as the sum of those generated by the galaxy and the Universe. The resulting solution explicitly includes a Universe frame-dragging term, aligning with the sixth version of Mach's principle proposed by Bondi and Samuel: "inertial mass is affected by the global distribution of matter". Neglecting the presence of the Universe, stars only have a relative rotation to the bulge, and their rotational velocities monotonically increase with the radial distance r to balance the increasing mass contained in distances < r. At larger distances, the bulge's attraction and its frame-dragging effect decrease, resulting in a constant rotational velocity. When the Universe is considered, stars also have a relative rotation to the non-rotating Universe and experience an additional centrifugal force at any distance from the bulge. This component induces a decrease in rotational velocity as the gravitational influence of the bulge diminishes with r. This model predicts the observed rotational velocity curves for the galaxies M31, M101, and M81 without requiring any dark matter halo or adjustable parameters. This success substantiates Mach's idea as an alternative to the dark matter halo theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, there has been significant interest regarding the regularization of a D→4$D\rightarrow 4$ limit of Einstein–Gauss–Bonnet (EGB) gravity. This regularization involves re‐scaling the Gauss–Bonnet (GB) coupling constant as α/(D−4)$\alpha /(D-4)$, which bypasses Lovelock's theorem and avoids Ostrogradsky instability. A noteworthy observation is that the maximally or spherically symmetric solutions for all the regularized gravities coincide in the 4D$4D$ scenario. Considering this, the wormhole solutions in the galactic halos are investigated based on three different choices of dark matter (DM) profiles, such as Universal Rotation Curve, Navarro–Frenk–White, and Scalar Field Dark Matter with the framework of 4D$4D$ EGB gravity. Also, the Karmarkar condition is used to find the exact solutions for the shape functions under different non‐constant redshift functions. The energy conditions for each DM profile are discussed and the influence of GB coefficient α$\alpha$ in violating energy conditions are noticed, especially null energy conditions. Further, some physical features of wormholes, viz. complexity factor, active gravitational mass, total gravitational energy, and embedding diagrams, have been explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a sample of K giant from Large sky Area Multi-Object fibre Spectroscopic Telescope Data Release 8 and a sample of RR Lyrae (RRL) from Gaia Data Release 3, we investigate the compositions of the Hercules–Aquila Cloud (HAC) and Virgo Overdensity (VOD) and their collective contribution to the tilt and triaxiality of the stellar halo (⁠|$r\, \lt \, 40\, {\rm kpc}$|⁠) as well as two breaks at |$\approx 15\, {\rm kpc}$| and 30 kpc. We apply the Gaussian mixture model to divide the stellar halo into the isotropic component and the radially biased anisotropic component, namely Gaia–Sausage–Enceladus (GSE), and find that both HAC and VOD are dominated by the GSE debris stars with weights of |$0.67^{+0.09}_{-0.07}$| and |$0.57^{+0.07}_{-0.06}$|⁠ , respectively. In addition, using the K giants with orbital parameters, we identify the member stars of known substructures, including GSE, Sagittarius (Sgr), Helmi Streams, Sequoia, Thamnos, Pontus, Wukong, and Metal-weak Thick Disc, to probe the compositions of low-eccentricity stars in the HAC and VOD regions. In density fittings of the RRL sample, we note that the absence of HAC and VOD has a weak effect on the shape of halo. Finally, we find that the radially biased anisotropic halo contributes majorly to the stellar halo that can be modelled with a tilted triaxial ellipsoid and a doubly broken power law with breaking radii at |$18.08^{+2.04}_{-3.22}\, {\rm kpc}$| and |$33.03^{+1.30}_{-1.21}\, {\rm kpc}$|⁠. This has important significance for understanding the status of large diffuse overdensities in the Milky Way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the non-adiabatic effect of time-dependent deformations in the Milky Way (MW) halo potential on stellar streams. Specifically, we consider the MW's response to the infall of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and how this impacts our ability to recover the spherically averaged MW mass profile from observation using stream actions. Previously, action clustering methods have only been applied to static or adiabatic MW systems to constrain the properties of the host system. We use a time-evolving MW–LMC simulation described by basis function expansions. We find that for streams with realistic observational uncertainties on shorter orbital periods and without close encounters with the LMC, e.g. GD-1, the radial action distribution is sufficiently clustered to locally recover the spherical MW mass profile across the stream radial range within a |$2\sigma$| confidence interval determined using a Fisher information approach. For streams with longer orbital periods and close encounters with the LMC, e.g. Orphan–Chenab (OC), the radial action distribution disperses as the MW halo has deformed non-adiabatically. Hence, for OC streams generated in potentials that include an MW halo with any deformations, action clustering methods will fail to recover the spherical mass profile within a |$2\sigma$| uncertainty. Finally, we investigate whether the clustering of stream energies can provide similar constraints. Surprisingly, we find for OC-like streams, the recovered spherically averaged mass profiles demonstrate less sensitivity to the time-dependent deformations in the potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. Within the Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) cosmology, dark matter haloes are expected to deviate from spherical symmetry. The particular shape of a galactic halo reflects the environment and mass assembly history of its host, as well as the nature of dark matter. Constraining halo shapes at large galactocentric distances is challenging because of the low density of luminous tracers. The well-studied massive early-type galaxy NGC 5128, also known as Centaurus A (Cen A), has a large number of radial velocity measurements for globular clusters (GCs) and planetary nebulae (PNe) extending over a vast area of its extended low-surface-brightness stellar halo. Aims. In this work, we aim to determine the deviation from spherical symmetry of the dark matter halo of Cen A at 5 Re using its GCs as kinematic tracers of the gravitational potential. Methods. We investigated the largest photometric catalogue of GC candidates in order to accurately characterise the spatial distribution of the relaxed population of GCs. To investigate the presence of non-relaxed structures in the kinematic catalogue of GCs, we used the relaxed point-symmetric velocity field as determined by the host's PNe population. We used anisotropic Jeans modelling under axisymmetric assumptions together with the Gaussian likelihood and GCs as discrete tracers. The gravitational potential is generated by flattened stellar and dark matter distributions. We leveraged the different orbital properties of the blue and red GCs – such as rotation and velocity anisotropy – to model both populations separately. By minimising χ2, we iteratively find the best-fit parameters. Results. We find that the discrete kinematics of the GCs are consistent with being drawn from an underlying relaxed velocity field determined from PNe. The best-fit parameters of the gravitational potential recovered from the blue and red GCs separately agree well and we use them to compute the final results: M200 = 1.86−0.691.61 × 1012 M⊙, M⋆/LB = 2.98−0.78+0.96, and the flattening qDM = 1.45−0.53+0.78. Both GC populations show mild rotation, with red having a slightly stronger rotational signature and radially biased orbits, and blue GCs preferring negative velocity anisotropy. Conclusions. An oblate or a spherical dark matter halo of NGC 5128 is strongly disfavoured by our modelling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent observations and simulations reveal that the circumgalactic medium (CGM) surrounding galaxies is multiphase, with the gas temperatures spanning a wide range at most radii, ∼104 K to the virial temperature (∼106 K for Milky Way). Traditional CGM models using simple density profiles are inadequate at reproducing observations that indicate a broad temperature range. Alternatively, a model based on probability distribution functions (PDFs) with parameters motivated by simulations can better match multiwavelength observations. In this work, we use log-normal distributions, commonly seen in the simulations of the multiphase interstellar and circumgalactic media, to model the multiphase CGM. We generalize the isothermal background model by Faerman et al. to include more general CGM profiles. We extend the existing probabilistic models from 1D-PDFs in temperature to 2D-PDFs in density–temperature phase space and constrain its parameters using a Milky Way-like Illustris TNG50-1 halo. We generate various synthetic observables such as column densities of different ions, UV/X-ray spectra, and dispersion and emission measures. X-ray and radio (Fast Radio Burst) observations mainly constrain the hot gas properties. However, interpreting cold/warm phase diagnostics is not straightforward since these phases are patchy, with inherent variability in intercepting these clouds along arbitrary lines of sight. We provide a tabulated comparison of model predictions with observations and plan to expand this into a comprehensive compilation of models and data. Our modelling provides a simple analytical framework that is useful for describing important aspects of the multiphase CGM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximate N -body methods, such as fastpm and cola , have been successful in modelling halo and galaxy clustering statistics, but their low resolution on small scales is a limitation for applications that require high precision. Full N -body simulations can provide better accuracy but are too computationally expensive for a quick exploration of cosmological parameters. This paper presents a method for correcting distinct haloes identified in fast N -body simulations, so that various halo statistics improve to a percent level accuracy. The scheme seeks to find empirical corrections to halo properties such that the virial mass is the same as that of a corresponding halo in a full N -body simulation. The modified outer density contour of the corrected halo is determined on the basis of the fastpm settings and the number of particles inside the halo. This method only changes some parameters of the halo finder, and does not require any extra CPU-cost. We demonstrate that the adjusted halo catalogues of fastpm simulations significantly improve the precision of halo mass-based statistics from redshifts |$z=0.0$| to 1.0, and that our calibration can be applied to different cosmologies without needing to be recalibrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument Milky Way Survey (DESI MWS) will explore the assembly history of the Milky Way by characterizing remnants of ancient dwarf galaxy accretion events and improving constraints on the distribution of dark matter in the outer halo. We present mock catalogues that reproduce the selection criteria of MWS and the format of the final MWS data set. These catalogues can be used to test methods for quantifying the properties of stellar halo substructure and reconstructing the Milky Way's accretion history with the MWS data, including the effects of halo-to-halo variance. The mock catalogues are based on a phase-space kernel expansion technique applied to star particles in the Auriga suite of six high-resolution lambda-cold dark matter magnetohydrodynamic zoom-in simulations. They include photometric properties (and associated errors) used in DESI target selection and the outputs of the MWS spectral analysis pipeline (radial velocity, metallicity, surface gravity, and temperature). They also include information from the underlying simulation, such as the total gravitational potential and information on the progenitors of accreted halo stars. We discuss how the subset of halo stars observable by MWS in these simulations corresponds to their true content and properties. These mock Milky Ways have rich accretion histories, resulting in a large number of substructures that span the whole stellar halo out to large distances and have substantial overlap in the space of orbital energy and angular momentum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We measure the kinematic signature arising from the Milky Way (MW) disc moving with respect to the outer stellar halo, which is observed as a dipole signal in the kinematics of stellar halo tracers. We quantify how the reflex motion varies as a function of Galactocentric distance, finding that (i) the amplitude of the dipole signal increases as a function of radius, and (ii) the direction moves across the sky. We compare the reflex motion signal against a compilation of published models that follow the MW–LMC interaction. These models show a similar trend of increasing amplitude of the reflex motion as a function of distance, but they do not reproduce the direction of the disc motion with respect to the stellar halo well. We also report mean motions for the stellar halo as a function of distance, finding radial compression in the outer halo and non-zero prograde rotation at all radii. The observed compression signal is also present in MW–LMC models, but the rotation is not, which suggests that the latter is not induced by the LMC. We extensively validate our technique to measure reflex motion against idealized tests. We discuss prospects for directly constraining the mass and orbital history of the LMC through the impact on the motion of the MW stellar disc, and how the modelling of the reflex motion can be improved as more and better data become available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulsar halos (also termed "TeV halos") are a new class of γ -ray sources in the Galaxy, which manifest as extended γ -ray emission around middle-aged pulsars, as discovered around the Geminga pulsar, the Monogem pulsar, and PSR J0622+3749 by the High-Altitude Water Cherenkov Observatory and the Large High-Altitude Air Shower Observatory. A consensus has been reached that the teraelectronvolt emission comes from the inverse Compton scattering of escaping electrons/positrons from the pulsar wind nebula of the soft background radiation field, while the particle transport mechanism in the halo is still in dispute. Currently, there are mainly three interpretations: the isotropic, suppressed diffusion model; the isotropic, unsuppressed diffusion model that considers the ballistic propagation of newly injected particles; and the anisotropic diffusion model. While the predicted γ -ray surface brightness profiles of all three models can be more or less consistent with the observations, the implications of the three models for cosmic-ray transport mechanisms and the properties of the interstellar magnetic field are quite different. In this study, we calculate the anticipated X-ray emission of pulsar halos under the three models. We show that the synchrotron radiation of these escaping electrons/positrons can produce a corresponding X-ray halo around the pulsar and that the expected surface brightness profiles are distinct in the three models. We suggest that sensitive X-ray detectors of a large field of view (such as eROSITA and the Einstein Probe) with a reasonably long exposure time are crucial to understanding the formation mechanism of pulsar halos and can serve as a probe of the properties of interstellar turbulence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Self-interacting dark matter (SIDM) is increasingly studied as a potential solution to small-scale discrepancies between simulations of cold dark matter (CDM) and observations. We examine a physically motivated two-state SIDM model with both elastic and inelastic scatterings. In particular, endothermic, exothermic, and elastic scattering have equal transfer cross-sections at high relative velocities (⁠|$v_{\rm rel}\gtrsim 400~{\rm km\, s}^{-1})$|⁠. In a suite of cosmological zoom-in simulation of Milky Way-size haloes, we vary the primordial state fractions to understand the impact of inelastic dark matter self-interactions on halo structure and evolution. In particular, we test how the initial conditions impact the present-day properties of dark matter haloes. Depending on the primordial state fraction, scattering reactions will be dominated by either exothermic or endothermic effects for high and low initial excited state fractions, respectively. We find that increasing the initial excited fraction reduces the mass of the main halo, as well as the number of subhaloes on all mass scales. The main haloes are cored, with lower inner densities and higher outer densities compared with CDM. Additionally, we find that the shape of the main halo becomes more spherical the higher the initial excited state fraction is. Finally, we show that the number of satellites steadily decreases with initial excited state fraction across all satellite masses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate extent of the disc in both vertical and radial directions by separately analysing the density and azimuthal velocity distributions using 31116 M giant stars selected from LAMOST DR5. We first measure the metallicities, radial velocities, and the distances with precision of 0.26 dex, 5.01 km s−1, and 20.8 per cent, respectively. Then, a Bayesian method is applied to model the distributions of the outer Galaxy including components of the thin, thick discs and the halo, to obtain the scale height and azimuthal velocity distributions for the thin and thick discs as a function of galactocentric distance R. The density profile of the thin disc shows that it extends out to R ∼ 35 kpc, beyond which there are no M giant stars in the halo except for Sagittarius Stream members. By using azimuthal velocity to trace the thin disc out to 26 kpc from the Galactic Centre, we show that both the density profile and azimuthal velocity decrease with Galactocentric distance R. In both the density and azimuthal velocity distributions, there is a significant breakpoint at a galactocentric distance of R ∼ 14 kpc. The scale height distribution shows that the thin disc is significantly flared, consistent with previous works. We also find that there is no significant thick disc (as traced by M giant stars) in the outer region beyond R ∼ 15.5 kpc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys photometry of an arc structure of stars in the southern halo of M82. The structure is located at a projected height of ≈5 kpc from the disc of M82 but its stellar content exhibits a younger mean age than that of typical halo stars. We measured the distance, mean age, and peak metallicity of the stars in the arc and used them to determine the structure's origin. The arc colour–magnitude diagram yields a tip of the red giant branch (RGB) distance of 3.63 ± 0.08 Mpc, similar to that of M82, confirming its association with the galaxy. The colour–magnitude diagram also reveals a population of predominantly young stars with a mean age of ≈100–160 Myr, which is similar to that of the young stars formed in the tidal debris between M81, M82, and NGC 3077. We derived the mean metallicity of the halo stars surrounding the arc to be [Fe/H] ≈ −1.0, similar to that of the RGB population of the halo of M81. The RGB stars in the arc, while they are slightly more metal-rich than the halo RGB, show no spatial correlation with the young stars, suggesting that the arc is consists of mainly young stellar population. Furthermore, the observed age gradient along the structure of the arc indicates that the arc began forming from the closer side to M82, then moving outward. Taken together, the results suggest that the formation of the young stars that give rise to the arc structure could have been triggered by the interactions between M82's southern outflow and the H  i gas clouds surrounding it, representing a snapshot of a tidal dwarf galaxy in the process of forming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a detailed chemical abundance and kinematic analysis of six extremely metal-poor (−4.2 ≤ [Fe/H] ≤−2.9) halo stars with very low neutron-capture abundances ([Sr/H] and [Ba/H]) based on high-resolution Magellan/MIKE spectra. Three of our stars have [Sr/Ba] and [Sr/H] ratios that resemble those of metal-poor stars in ultra-faint dwarf galaxies (UFDs). Since early UFDs may be the building blocks of the Milky Way, extremely metal-poor halo stars with low, UFD-like Sr and Ba abundances may thus be ancient stars from the earliest small galactic systems that were accreted by the proto-Milky Way. We label these objects as Small Accreted Stellar System (SASS) stars, and we find an additional 61 similar ones in the literature. A kinematic analysis of our sample and literature stars reveals them to be fast-moving halo objects, all with retrograde motion, indicating an accretion origin. Because SASS stars are much brighter than typical UFD stars, identifying them offers promising ways towards detailed studies of early star formation environments. From the chemical abundances of SASS stars, it appears that the earliest accreted systems were likely enriched by a few supernovae whose light element yields varied from system to system. Neutron-capture elements were sparsely produced and/or diluted, with r -process nucleosynthesis playing a role. These insights offer a glimpse into the early formation of the Galaxy. Using neutron-capture elements as a distinguishing criterion for early formation, we have access to a unique metal-poor population that consists of the oldest stars in the universe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extraplanar diffuse ionized gas (eDIG) represents ionized gases traced by optical/UV lines beyond the stellar extent of galaxies. We herein introduce a novel multislit narrow-band spectroscopy method to conduct spatially resolved spectroscopy of the eDIG around a sample of nearby edge-on disk galaxies (eDIG-CHANGES). In this paper, we introduce the project design and major scientific goals, as well as a pilot study of NGC 3556 (M108). The eDIG is detected to a vertical extent of a few kiloparsecs above the disk, comparable to the X-ray and radio images. We do not see significant vertical variation of the [N ii ]/H α line ratio. A rough examination of the pressure balance between different circumgalactic medium phases indicates the magnetic field is in a rough pressure balance with the X-ray emitting hot gas and may play an important role in the global motion of both the eDIG and the hot gas in the lower halo. At the location of an Hubble Space Telescope/Cosmic Origins Spectrograph observed UV bright background active galactic nucleus ∼29 kpc from the center of NGC 3556, the magnetic pressure is much lower than that of the hot gas and the ionized gas traced by UV absorption lines, although the extrapolation of the pressure profiles may cause some biases in this comparison. By comparing the position–velocity diagrams of the optical and CO lines, we also find the dynamics of the two gas phases are consistent with each other, with no evidence of a global inflow/outflow and a maximum rotation velocity of ∼150 km s−1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present astrolink , an efficient and versatile clustering algorithm designed to hierarchically classify astrophysically relevant structures from both synthetic and observational data sets. We build upon clustar-nd , a hierarchical galaxy/(sub)halo finder, so that astrolink now generates a 2D representation of the implicit clustering structure as well as ensuring that clusters are statistically distinct from the noisy density fluctuations implicit within the n -dimensional input data. This redesign replaces the three cluster extraction parameters from clustar-nd with a single parameter, S – the lower statistical significance threshold of clusters, which can be automatically and reliably estimated via a dynamical model-fitting process. We demonstrate the robustness of this approach compared to astrolink 's predecessors by applying each algorithm to a suite of simulated galaxies defined over various feature spaces. We find that astrolink delivers a more powerful clustering performance while being |$\sim 27~{{\ \rm per \, cent}}$| faster and using less memory than clustar-nd. With these improvements, astrolink is ideally suited to extracting a meaningful set of hierarchical and arbitrarily shaped astrophysical clusters from both synthetic and observational data sets – lending itself as a great tool for morphological decomposition within the context of hierarchical structure formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

EC 19529−4430 was identified as a helium-rich star in the Edinburgh–Cape (EC) Survey of faint-blue objects and subsequently resolved as a metal-poor extreme helium (EHe) star in the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) survey of chemically peculiar hot subdwarfs. This paper presents a fine analysis of the SALT high-resolution spectrum. EC 19529−4430 has |$T_{\rm eff} = 20\, 700 \pm 250$|  K, |$\log g /{\rm cm\, s^{-2}} = 3.49\pm 0.03$|⁠ , and an overall metallicity some 1.3 dex below solar; surface hydrogen is |$\approx 0.5~{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$| by number. The surface CNO ratio 1:100:8 implies that the surface consists principally of CNO-processed helium and makes EC 19529−4430 the coolest known carbon-poor and nitrogen-rich EHe star. Metal-rich analogues include V652 Her and GALEX J184559.8−413827. Kinematically, its retrograde orbit indicates membership of the Galactic halo. No pulsations were detected in TESS photometry and there is no evidence for a binary companion. EC 19529−4430 most likely formed from the merging of two helium white dwarfs, which themselves formed as a binary system some 11 Gyr ago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galaxies obey a number of empirical correlations between their radio, γ-ray, and infrared emission, but the physical origins of these correlations remain uncertain. Here, we use the CONGRuENTS model for broad-band non-thermal emission from star-forming galaxies, which self-consistently calculates energy-dependent transport and non-thermal emission from cosmic ray hadrons and leptons, to predict radio and γ-ray emission for a synthetic galaxy population with properties drawn from a large deep-field survey. We show that our synthetic galaxies reproduce observed relations such as the far infrared (FIR)–radio correlation, the FIR–γ correlation, and the distribution of radio spectral indices, and we use the model to explain the physical origins of these relations. Our results show that the FIR–radio correlation arises because the amount of cosmic ray electron power ultimately radiated as synchrotron emission varies only weakly with galaxy star formation rate as a result of the constraints imposed on gas properties by hydrostatic balance and turbulent dynamo action; the same physics dictates the extent of proton calorimetry in different galaxies, and thus sets the FIR–γ–ray correlation. We further show that galactic radio spectral indices result primarily from competition between thermal free–free emission and energy-dependent loss of cosmic ray electrons to bremsstrahlung and escape into galactic haloes, with shaping of the spectrum by inverse Compton, synchrotron, and ionization processes typically playing a subdominant role. In addition to explaining existing observations, we use our analysis to predict a heretofore unseen correlation between the curvature of galaxies' radio spectra and their pion-driven γ-ray emission, a prediction that will be testable with upcoming facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The clustering of galaxies and their connections to their initial conditions is a major means by which we learn about cosmology. However, the stochasticity between galaxies and their underlying matter field is a major limitation for precise measurements of galaxy clustering. Efforts have been made with an optimal weighting scheme to reduce this stochasticity using the mass-dependent clustering of dark matter haloes. Here, we show that this is not optimal. We demonstrate that the cosmic-web environments (voids, sheets, filaments, and knots) of haloes, when combined linearly with the linear bias, provide extra information for reducing stochasticity in terms of two-point statistics. Using the environmental information alone can increase the signal-to-noise of clustering by a factor of 3 better than the white-noise level at the scales of the baryon acoustic oscillations. The information about the environment and halo mass are complementary. Their combination increases the signal-to-noise by another factor of 2-3. The information about the cosmic web correlates with other properties of haloes, including halo concentrations and tidal forces – all are related to the assembly bias of haloes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RR Lyrae stars are standard candles with characteristic photometric variability and serve as powerful tracers of Galactic structure, substructure, accretion history, and dark matter content. Here we report the discovery of distant RR Lyrae stars, including some of the most distant stars known in the Milky Way halo, with Galactocentric distances of ∼300 kpc. We use time-series u * g ′ i ′ z ′ Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope/MegaCam photometry from the Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS). We use a template light-curve fitting method based on empirical Sloan Digital Sky Survey Stripe 82 RR Lyrae data to identify RR Lyrae candidates in the NGVS data set. We eliminate several hundred suspected quasars and identify 180 RR Lyrae candidates with heliocentric distances of ∼20–300 kpc. The halo stellar density distribution is consistent with an r −4.09±0.10 power-law radial profile over most of this distance range with no signs of a break. The distribution of ab-type RR Lyrae in a period–amplitude plot (Bailey diagram) suggests that the mean metallicity of the halo decreases outward. Compared to other recent RR Lyrae surveys, like Pan-STARRS1, the High Cadence Transient Survey, and the Dark Energy Survey, our NGVS study has better single-epoch photometric precision and a comparable number of epochs but smaller sky coverage. At large distances, our RR Lyrae sample appears to be relatively pure and complete, with well-measured periods and amplitudes. These newly discovered distant RR Lyrae stars are important additions to the few secure stellar tracers beyond 150 kpc in the Milky Way halo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. The spatial distribution of dark matter halos carries cosmological and astrophysical information. Cosmological information can be considered to be contained in the connection between halo main properties and the large-scale halo bias, while the astrophysical information would be encoded in the scaling relations between halo properties. The combination of these two contributions leads to the effect of secondary halo bias. Aims. Our goal is to measure the signal of secondary halo bias as a function of a variety of intrinsic and environmental halo properties and to characterize its statistical significance as a function of cosmological redshift. Methods. Using fixed and paired N-body simulations of dark-matter halos – the UNIT simulation – with masses above ∼1011 M⊙h−1 identified over a wide range of cosmological redshifts (0 < z < 5), we explored the behavior of the scaling relations among different halo properties. We included novel environmental properties based on the halo distribution as well as the underlying dark-matter field. We implemented an object-by-object estimator of large-scale effective bias and tested its validity against standard approaches. With a bias assigned to each tracer, we performed a statistical analysis aimed at characterizing the distribution of the bias and the signal of the secondary halo bias. Results. We show how the halo scaling relations linking direct probes of the halo potential well do not depend on the environment. On the contrary, links between the halo mass and the so-called set of secondary halo properties are sensitive to the cosmological environment, mainly to under-dense regions. We show that the signal of secondary bias is derived statistically from secondary correlations beyond the standard link to the halo mass. Conclusions. We show that the secondary bias arises through nonlocal and/or environmental properties related either to the halo distribution or to the properties of the underlying dark-matter field. In particular, properties such as the tidal field (a measure of the anisotropy of the density field) and the local Mach number (a measure of the local kinetic temperature of the halo distribution) generate the signals of the secondary bias with the highest significance. We propose applications of the assignment of individual bias for the generation of mock catalogs containing the signal of secondary bias, as well as a series of cosmological analyses aimed at mining large galaxy datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. Stars that are found on the blue horizontal-branch (BHB) evolved from low-mass stars that have completed their core hydrogen-burning main sequence (MS) stage and undergone the helium flash at the end of their red giant phase. Hence, they are very old objects that can be used as markers in studying galactic structure and formation history. The fact that their luminosity is virtually constant at all effective temperatures also makes them good standard candles. Aims. We have compiled a catalogue of BHB stars with stellar parameters calculated from spectral energy distributions (SEDs) constructed using data from multiple large-scale photometric surveys. In addition, we update our previous Gaia Early Data Release 3 (EDR3) catalogue of BHB stars with parallax errors less than 20% by using the SED results to define the selection criteria. The purpose of these catalogues is to create a set of BHB star candidates with reliable stellar parameters. In addition, they provide a more complete full-sky catalogue with candidate objects found along the whole BHB from where RR-Lyrae are found on the instability strip to the extreme horizontal-branch (EHB). Methods. We selected a large dataset of Gaia Data Release 3 (DR3) objects based only on their position on the colour-magnitude diagram (CMD), along with the tangential velocity and parallax errors. The SEDs were then used to evaluate contamination levels in the dataset and derive optimised data quality acceptance constraints. This allowed us to extend the Gaia DR3 colour and absolute magnitude criteria further towards the EHB. The level of contamination found using SED analysis was confirmed by acquiring spectra using the Ondrejov Echelle spectrograph, attached to the Perek 2m telescope at the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences. Results. We present a catalogue of 9172 Galactic halo BHB candidate stars with atmospheric and stellar parameters calculated from synthetic SEDs. We also present an extended Gaia DR3-based catalogue of 22 335 BHB candidate stars with a wider range of effective temperatures and Gaia DR3 parallax errors of less than 20%. This represents an increase of 33% compared to the our 2021 catalogue, with a contamination level of 10%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fuzzy dark matter (FDM), an attractive dark matter candidate comprising ultralight bosons (axions) with a particle mass ma ∼ 10−22 eV, is motivated by the small-scale challenges of cold dark matter and features a kpc-size de Broglie wavelength. Quantum wave interference inside an FDM halo gives rise to stochastically fluctuating density granulation; the resulting gravitational perturbations could drive significant disc thickening, providing a natural explanation for galactic thick discs. Here we present the first self-consistent simulations of FDM haloes and stellar discs, exploring ma  = 0.2–1.2 × 10−22 eV and halo masses M h = 0.7–2.8 × 1011 M⊙. Disc thickening is observed in all simulated systems. The disc heating rates are approximately constant in time and increase substantially with decreasing ma , reaching d h /d t ≃ 0.04 (0.4) kpc Gyr−1 and |${\rm d}\sigma _z^2/{\rm d}t \simeq 4$| (150) km2 s−2 Gyr−1 for ma  = 1.2 (0.2) × 10−22 eV and |$M_{\rm h}=7\times 10^{10} \, \rm {M}_{\odot }$|⁠ , where h is the disc scale height and σ z is the vertical velocity dispersion. These simulated heating rates agree within a factor of two with the theoretical estimates of Chiang et al. confirming that the rough estimate of Church et al. overpredicts the granulation-driven disc heating rate by two orders of magnitude. However, the simulation-inferred heating rates scale less steeply than the theoretically predicted relation |${\rm d}\sigma ^2_z/{\rm d}t \propto m_a^{-3}$|⁠. Finally, we examine the applicability of the Fokker–Planck approximation in FDM granulation modelling and the robustness of the ma exclusion bound derived from the Galactic disc kinematics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pseudo-spin symmetry (PSS) provides an important angle to understand nuclear microscopic structure and the novel phenomena found in unstable nuclei. The relativistic Hartree–Fock (RHF) theory, that takes the important degrees of freedom associated with the π -meson and ρ -tensor (ρ -T) couplings into account, provides an appropriate description of the PSS restoration in realistic nuclei, particularly for the pseudo-spin (PS) doublets with high angular momenta ( l ˜ ). The investigations of the PSS within the RHF theory are recalled in this paper by focusing on the effects of the Fock terms. Aiming at common artificial shell closures appearing in previous relativistic mean-field calculations, the mechanism responsible for the PSS restoration of high- l ˜ orbits is stressed, revealing the manifestation of nuclear in-medium effects on the PSS, and thus, providing qualitative guidance on modeling the in-medium balance between nuclear attractions and repulsions. Moreover, the essential role played by the ρ -T coupling, that contributes mainly via the Fock terms, is introduced as combined with the relations between the PSS and various nuclear phenomena, including the shell structure and the evolution, novel halo and bubble-like phenomena, and the superheavy magicity. As the consequences of the nuclear force in complicated nuclear many-body systems, the PSS itself and the mechanism therein can not only deepen our understanding of nuclear microscopic structure and relevant phenomena, but also provide special insight into the nature of the nuclear force, which can further enrich our knowledge of nuclear physics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DIffuse X-ray Explorer (DIXE) is a proposed high-resolution X-ray spectroscopic sky surveyor on the China Space Station (CSS). DIXE will focus on studying hot baryons in the Milky Way. Galactic hot baryons like the X-ray emitting Milky Way halo and eROSITA bubbles are best observed in the sky survey mode with a large field of view. DIXE will take advantage of the orbital motion of the CSS to scan a large fraction of the sky. High-resolution X-ray spectroscopy, enabled by superconducting microcalorimeters based on the transition-edge sensor technology, will probe the physical properties (e.g., temperature, density, elemental abundances, kinematics) of the galactic hot baryons. This will complement the high-resolution imaging data obtained with the eROSITA mission. Here we present the preliminary design of DIXE. The payload consists mainly of a detector assembly and a cryogenic cooling system. The key components of the detector assembly are a microcalorimeter array and frequency-domain multiplexing readout electronics. To provide a working temperature for the detector assembly, the cooling system consists of an adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator and a mechanical cryocooler system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dark matter may be detected in X-ray decay, including from the decay of the dark matter particles that make up the Milky Way (MW) halo. We use a range of density profiles to compute X-ray line intensity profiles, with a focus on the resonantly produced sterile neutrino dark matter candidate. Compared to the Navarro–Frenk–White density profile, we show that using an adiabatically contracted halo profile suppresses the line intensity in the halo outskirts and enhances it in the Galactic Centre (GC), although this enhancement is eliminated by the likely presence of a core within 3 kpc. Comparing our results to MW halo observations, other X-ray observations, and structure formation constraints implies a sterile neutrino mixing angle parameter s 11 ≡ sin 2(2θ) × 1011 ∼ [3, 4] (particle lifetime |$\tau _{28}\equiv \tau /(10^{28}\rm {s})\sim [1.0,1.3]$|⁠), which is nevertheless is strong tension with some reported non-detections. We make predictions for the likely decay flux that the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) satellite would measure in the GC, plus the Virgo and Perseus clusters, and outline further steps to determine whether the dark matter is indeed resonantly produced sterile neutrinos as detected in X-ray decay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We trace the connectivity of the cosmic web as defined by haloes in the Planck-Millennium simulation using a persistence and Betti curve analysis. We normalize clustering up to the second-order correlation function and use our systematic topological analysis to correlate local information and properties of haloes with their multiscale geometrical environment of the cosmic web (elongated filamentary bridges and sheetlike walls). We capture the multiscale topology traced by the halo distribution through filtrations of the corresponding Delaunay tessellation. The resulting nested alpha shapes are sensitive to the local density, perfectly outline the local geometry, and contain the complete information on the multiscale topology. We find a remarkable linear relationship between halo masses and topology: haloes of different mass trace environments with different topological signature. This is a topological bias , an environmental structure bias independent of the halo clustering bias associated with the two-point correlation function. This mass-dependent linear scaling relation allows us to take clustering into account and determine the overall connectivity from a limited sample of galaxies. The presence of topological bias has major implications for the study of voids and filaments in the observed distribution of galaxies. The (infra)structure and shape of these key cosmic web components will strongly depend on the underlying galaxy sample. Their use as cosmological probes, with their properties influenced by cosmological parameters, will have to account for the subtleties of topological bias. This is of particular relevance with the large upcoming galaxy surveys such as DESI, Euclid, and the Vera Rubin telescope surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present N -body simulations of the process of bulge formation in disc galaxies due to inward migration of massive stellar clumps. The process is accompanied by dark halo heating, with a quasi-isothermal core replacing the initial central density cusp, transforming an initially dark matter dominated central region into a baryon dominated one. The characteristics of the clumps are chosen to be compatible with low redshift observations of stellar clumps in DYNAMO-HST galaxies, which may be relatively long lived in terms of being robust against internal starburst-instigated disruption. We thus test for disruption due to tidal stripping using different clump internal radial profiles; Plummer, Hernquist, and Jaffe, in ascending order of see per central density profile. Our calculations predict that in order for clump migration to be effective in building galactic bulges and dark halo cores, steeply increasing central clump profiles, or a less massive or less concentrated haloes, are preferred. The dependence on such factors may contribute to the diversity in observed total mass distributions and resulting rotation curves in galaxies. When the process is most efficient, a 'bulge-halo conspiracy', with a singular isothermal total density akin to that observed bright galaxies, results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dwarf satellites in galaxy groups are distributed in an anisotropic and asymmetric manner, which is called the 'lopsided satellite distribution'. This lopsided signal has been observed not only in galaxy pairs but also in isolated systems. However, the physical origin of the lopsided signal in isolated systems is still unknown. In this work, we investigate this in the state-of-the-art hydrodynamical simulation of the MillenniumTNG Project by tracing each system back to high redshift. We find that the lopsided signal is dominated by satellites located in the outer regions of the halo and is also dominated by recently accreted satellites. The lopsided signal originates from the anisotropic accretion of galaxies from the surrounding large-scale structure and that, after accretion, the non-linear evolution of satellites inside the dark matter halo weakens the lopsidedness. The signal decreases as cosmic time passes because of a competition between anisotropic accretion and internal evolution within dark matter haloes. Our findings provide a useful perspective for the study of galaxy evolution, especially for the origin of the spatial satellite galaxy distributions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The indirect search for dark matter is typically restricted to individual photon bands and instruments. In the context of multiwavelength observations, finding a weak signal in large foreground and background at only one wavelength band is hampered by systematic uncertainties dominating the signal strength. Dark matter particle annihilation is producing Standard Model particles of which the prompt photon emission is searched for in many studies. However, also the secondary emission of charged particles from dark matter annihilation in the TeV range results in comparable or even stronger fluxes in the GHz–GeV range. In this study, we calculate the prompt and secondary emission of a scotogenic weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) with a mass of 1 TeV in 27 dwarf galaxies of the Milky Way. For the secondary emission, we include inverse Compton scattering, bremsstrahlung, and synchrotron radiation, which results in a 'triple hump' structure characteristic for only dark matter and no other astrophysical source. In order to determine the best candidates for multi-instrument analyses, we estimate the diffuse emission component of the Milky Way itself, including its own dark matter halo from the same scotogenic WIMP model. We find signal-to-background ratios of individual sources on the order of 10−3 to 10−2 across X-ray to γ-ray assuming J factors for the cold dark matter distribution inferred from observations and no additional boosting due to small-scale clumping. We argue that a joint multiwavelength analysis of all nearby galaxies and the extension towards the cosmic gamma-ray background is required to disentangle possible dark matter signals from astrophysical background and foreground. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We address the galaxy rotation curves through the Yukawa gravitational potential emerging as a correction of the Newtonian potential in extended theories of gravity. On the one hand, we consider the contribution of the galactic bulge, galactic disk, and the dark matter halo of the Navarro–Frenk–White profile, in the framework of the standard Λ CDM model. On the other hand, we use modified Yukawa gravity to show that the rotational velocity of galaxies can be addressed successfully without the need for dark matter. In Yukawa gravity, we recover MOND and show that dark matter might be seen as an apparent effect due to the modification of the law of gravitation in terms of two parameters: the coupling constant α and the characteristic length λ . We thus test our theoretical scenario using the Milky Way and M31 rotation velocity curves. In particular, we place observational constraints on the free parameters of Yukawa cosmology through the Monte Carlo method and then compare our results with the predictions of the Λ CDM paradigm by making use of Bayesian information criteria. Specifically, we find that λ is constrained to be of the order of kpc, while cosmological data suggest λ of the order of Gpc. To explain this discrepancy, we argue that there is a fundamental limitation in measuring λ due to the role of quantum mechanics on cosmological scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We derived the dust-to-H  i ratio of the intermediate-velocity clouds (IVCs), the high-velocity clouds (HVCs), and the local H  i gas, by carrying out a multiple-regression analysis of the 21 cm H  i emission combined with the sub-mm dust optical depth. The method covers over 80 per cent of the sky contiguously at a resolution of 47 arcmin and is distinguished from the absorption-line measurements toward bright galaxies and stars covering a tiny fraction of the sky. Major results include that the ratio of the IVCs is in a range of 0.1–1.5 with a mode at 0.6 (relative to the solar-neighbourhood value, likewise below) and that a significant fraction, ∼20 per cent, of the IVCs include dust-poor gas with a ratio of <0.5. It is confirmed that 50 per cent of the HVC Complex C has a ratio of <0.3, and that the Magellanic Stream has the lowest ratio with a mode at ∼0.1. The results prove that some IVCs have low metallicity gas, contrary to the previous absorption-line measurements. Considering that the recent works show that the IVCs are interacting and exchanging momentum with the high-metallicity Galactic halo gas, we argue that the high-metallicity gas contaminates a significant fraction of the IVCs. Accordingly, we argue that the IVCs include a significant fraction of the low-metallicity gas supplied from outside the Galaxy as an alternative to the Galactic-fountain model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We apply the marked correlation function test proposed by Armijo et al. (Paper I) to samples of luminous red galaxies (LRGs) from the final data release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) III. The test assigns a density-dependent mark to galaxies in the estimation of the projected marked correlation function. Two gravity models are compared: general relativity (GR) and |$f(R)$| gravity. We build mock catalogues which, by construction, reproduce the measured galaxy number density and two-point correlation function of the LRG samples, using the halo occupation distribution model (HOD). A range of HOD models give acceptable fits to the observational constraints, and this uncertainty is fed through to the error in the predicted marked correlation functions. The uncertainty from the HOD modelling is comparable to the sample variance for the SDSS-III LRG samples. Our analysis shows that current galaxy catalogues are too small for the test to distinguish a popular |$f(R)$| model from GR. However, upcoming surveys with a better measured galaxy number density and smaller errors on the two-point correlation function, or a better understanding of galaxy formation, may allow our method to distinguish between viable gravity models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use the voids-within-voids-within-voids (VVV) simulations, a suite of successive nested N -body simulations with extremely high resolution (denoted, from low to high resolution, by L0 to L7), to test the Press–Schechter (PS), Sheth–Tormen (ST), and extended Press–Schechter (EPS) formulae for the halo abundance over the entire mass range, from minihaloes of 10−6 M⊙, to cluster haloes of 1015 M⊙, at different redshifts, from z = 30 to the present. We find that at z = 0 and z = 2, ST best reproduces the results of L0, which has the mean cosmic density (overdensity δ = 0), at 1011−15 M⊙. The higher resolution levels (L1–L7) are biased underdense regions (δ < −0.6). The EPS formalism takes this into account since it gives the mass function of a region conditioned, in this case, on having a given underdensity. EPS provides good matches to these higher levels, with deviations ≲20 per cent, at 10−6−12.5 M⊙. At z ∼ 7−15, the ST predictions for L0 and the EPS for L1–L7 show somewhat larger deviations from the simulation results. However, at even higher redshifts, z ∼ 30, EPS fits the simulations well again. We confirm our results by picking more subvolumes from the L0 simulation, finding that our conclusions depend only weakly on the size and overdensity of the region. The good agreement of EPS with the higher level simulations implies that PS (or ST) gives an accurate description of the total halo mass function in representative regions of the universe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The clustering of matter, as measured by the matter power spectrum, informs us about cosmology, dark matter, and baryonic effects on the distribution of matter in the universe. Using cosmological hydrodynamical simulations from the cosmo-OWLS and BAHAMAS simulation projects, we investigate the contribution of power in haloes with various masses, to the full power spectrum, as well as the power ratio between baryonic and dark matter only (DMO) simulations for a matched (between simulations) and an unmatched set of haloes. We find that the presence of AGN feedback suppresses the power on all scales for haloes of all masses examined (1011.25 ≤  M 500, crit ≤  |$10^{14.75}\, \mathrm{M_\odot }/h$|⁠), by ejecting matter from within |$r_{500,\mathrm{c}}\,$| to |$r_{200,\mathrm{m}}\,$| and potentially beyond in massive haloes (M 500, crit ≳  |$10^{{13}}\, \mathrm{M_\odot }/h$|⁠), and likely impeding the growth of lower-mass haloes as a consequence. A lower AGN feedback temperature changes the behaviour of high-mass haloes (M 500, crit ≥  |$10^{{13.25}}\, \mathrm{M_\odot }/h$|⁠), damping the effects of AGN feedback at small scales, |$k\, {{\gtrsim }}\, {{4}}\, h\mathrm{\, Mpc^{-1}}$|⁠. For |$k\, {{\lesssim }}\, {{3}}\, h\mathrm{\, Mpc^{-1}}$|⁠ , group-sized haloes (⁠|$10^{{14\pm 0.25}}\, \mathrm{M_\odot }/h$|⁠) dominate the power spectrum, while on smaller scales the combined contributions of lower-mass haloes to the full power spectrum rise above that of the group-sized haloes. Finally, we present a model for the power suppression due to feedback, which combines observed mean halo baryon fractions with halo mass fractions and halo-matter cross-spectra extracted from DMO simulations to predict the power suppression to per cent level accuracy down to |$k\, {{\approx }}\, {{10}}\, h\mathrm{\, Mpc^{-1}}$| without any free parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We provide an explanation for the reduced dynamical friction on galactic bars in spinning dark matter haloes. Earlier work based on linear theory predicted an increase in dynamical friction when dark haloes have a net forward rotation because prograde orbits couple to bars with greater strength than retrograde orbits. Subsequent numerical studies, however, found the opposite trend: dynamical friction weakens with increasing spin of the halo. We revisit this problem and demonstrate that linear theory in fact correctly predicts a reduced torque in forward-rotating haloes. We show that shifting the halo mass from retrograde to prograde phase space generates a positive gradient in the distribution function near the origin of the z -angular momentum (Lz  = 0), which results in a resonant transfer of Lz to the bar, making the net dynamical friction weaker. While this effect is subdominant for the major resonances, including the corotation resonance, it leads to a significant positive torque on the bar for the series of direct radial resonances as these resonances are strongest at Lz  = 0. The overall dynamical friction from spinning haloes is shown to decrease with the halo's spin in agreement with the secular behaviour of N -body simulations. We validate our linear calculation by computing the non-linear torque from individual resonances using the angle-averaged Hamiltonian. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an analysis of the quenching of local observed and simulated galaxies, including an investigation of the dependence of quiescence on both intrinsic and environmental parameters. We apply an advanced machine learning technique utilizing random forest classification to predict when galaxies are star forming or quenched. We perform separate classification analyses for three groups of galaxies: (a) central galaxies, (b) high-mass satellites (⁠|$M_{*} \gt 10^{10.5}\,{\rm {\rm M}_{\odot }}$|⁠), and (c) low-mass satellites (⁠|$M_{*} \lt 10^{10}\,{\rm {\rm M}_{\odot }}$|⁠) for three cosmological hydrodynamical simulations (Evolution and Assembly of GaLaxies and their Environments, Illustris, and IllustrisTNG), and observational data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The simulation results are unanimous and unambiguous: quiescence in centrals and high-mass satellites is best predicted by intrinsic parameters (specifically central black hole mass), while it is best predicted by environmental parameters (specifically halo mass) for low-mass satellites. In observations, we find black hole mass to best predict quiescence for centrals and high-mass satellites, exactly as predicted by the simulations. However, local galaxy overdensity is found to be most predictive parameter for low-mass satellites. None the less, both simulations and observations do agree that it is environment which quenches low-mass satellites. We provide evidence which suggests that the dominance of local overdensity in classifying low-mass systems may be due to the high uncertainty in halo mass estimation from abundance matching, rather than it being fundamentally a more predictive parameter. Finally, we establish that the qualitative trends with environment predicted in simulations are recoverable in the observation space. This has important implications for future wide-field galaxy surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simulations of structure formation in the standard cold dark matter cosmological model quantify the dark matter halos of galaxies. Taking into account dynamical friction between dark matter halos, we investigate the past orbital dynamical evolution of the Magellanic Clouds in the presence of the Galaxy. Our calculations are based on a three-body model of rigid Navarro–Frenk–White profiles for dark matter halos but were verified in a previous publication by comparison to high-resolution N-body simulations of live self-consistent systems. Under the requirement that the LMC and SMC had an encounter within 20 kpc between 1 and 4 Gyr ago in order to allow the development of the Magellanic Stream, using the latest astrometric data, the dynamical evolution of the MW/LMC/SMC system is calculated backwards in time. With the employment of the genetic algorithm and a Markov-Chain Monte-Carlo method, the present state of this system is unlikely, with a probability of < 10 − 9 ( 6 σ complement), because the solutions found do not fit into the error bars for the observed plane-of-sky velocity components of the Magellanic Clouds. This implies that orbital solutions that assume dark matter halos, according to cosmological structure formation theory, to exist around the Magellanic Clouds and the Milky Way are not possible with a confidence of more than 6 sigma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theories on the bosonic nature of dark matter are a promising alternative to the cold dark matter model. Here we consider a dark matter halo in the state of a Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC), subject to the gravitation of a black hole. In the low energy limit, we bring together the general relativity in the Schwarzschild metric and the quantum description of the BEC. The model is solvable in the Fermi normal coordinates with the so called highly nonlocal approximation and describes tidal deformations in the condensate wave function. The black hole deforms the localized condensate until the attraction of the compact object overcomes the self-gravitation and destabilizes the solitonic dark matter. Moreover, the model can be implemented as a gravitational analog in the laboratory; the time-dependent potential generated by the galactic black hole can be mimicked by an optical trap acting on a conventional condensate. The results open the way to new laboratory simulators for quantum gravitational effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explore the possibility of using measurements of the gravitational redshift effect as a means to constrain wave dark matter—a class of models in which the dark matter is accounted for by light scalar particles that behave like classical waves. We construct a mathematical framework that is appropriate for clock comparison experiments with remote clocks and can be used to determine the values of the coupling constants of such dark matter with particles of the Standard Model. Using this framework, we consider an experiment to detect dark matter of the Galactic halo using two satellites equipped with accurate and stable atomic clocks and placed into elliptical heliocentric orbits. We demonstrate that, in most cases, the accuracy of this experiment turns out to be not better than that of ground-based experiments with colocated clocks. The limitation of the accuracy of the space-based experiment is found to be due to the non-relativistic Doppler compensation system, required when using moving clocks, which decreases the amplitude of the useful signal. Possible solutions to this problem are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present results from the first spatially resolved kinematic and dynamical modelling analysis of the unique SDSSJ0946+1006 ('Jackpot') triple-source lens system, where a single massive foreground |$z\, =\, 0.222$| galaxy multiple-images three background sources at different redshifts. Deep integral field unit spectroscopic data were obtained using the MUSE instrument on the VLT, which, compared to previous single-slit observations, provides full azimuthal area coverage, high sensitivity (5 h integration) and high angular resolution (0.5 arcsec full width at half-maximum). To account for the strong continuum contributions from the |$z\, =\, 0.609$| source, a multiple-component stellar template fitting technique is adopted to fit to the spectra of both the lens galaxy and the bright lensed background arc simultaneously. Through this, we robustly measure the first and second moments of the 2D stellar kinematics out to about 10 kpc from the centre of the lens, as well as resolving the inner profile inwards to ∼1 kpc. The 2D kinematic maps show a steep velocity dispersion gradient and a clear rotational component. We constrain the characteristic properties of the stellar and dark matter (DM) mass components with a sufficiently flexible parametrised dynamical model and an imposed lensing mass and find a DM density slope of |$\gamma \, =\, 1.73\substack{+0.17 \\ -0.26}$|⁠ , i.e. significantly steeper than an unmodified NFW profile (⁠|$\gamma \, =\, 1$|⁠) and consistent with a contracted DM halo. Our fitted models have a lensing-equivalent density slope of |$\eta \, =\, 0.96\pm 0.02$|⁠ , and thus we confirm most pure lensing results in finding a near isothermal profile for this galaxy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The standard paradigm for the formation of the Universe suggests that large structures are formed from hierarchical clustering by the continuous accretion of less massive galaxy systems through filaments. In this context, filamentary structures play an important role in the properties and evolution of galaxies by connecting high-density regions, such as nodes, and being surrounded by low-density regions, such as cosmic voids. The availability of the filament and critical point catalogues extracted by disperse from the illustris TNG300-1 hydrodynamic simulation allows a detailed analysis of these structures. The halo occupation distribution (HOD) is a powerful tool for linking galaxies and dark matter haloes, allowing constrained models of galaxy formation and evolution. In this work, we combine the advantage of halo occupancy with information from the filament network to analyse the HOD in filaments and nodes. In our study, we distinguish the inner regions of cosmic filaments and nodes from their surroundings. The results show that the filamentary structures have a similar trend to the total galaxy sample covering a wide range of densities. In the case of the nodes sample, an excess of faint and blue galaxies is found for the low-mass haloes suggesting that these structures are not virialized and that galaxies may be continuously falling through the filaments. Instead, the higher mass haloes could be in a more advanced stage of evolution showing features of virialized structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Warm dark matter (WDM) particles with masses (∼ kilo electronvolt) offer an attractive solution to the small-scale issues faced by the cold dark matter (CDM) paradigm. The delay of structure formation in WDM models and the associated dearth of low-mass systems at high redshifts makes this an ideal time to revisit WDM constraints in light of the unprecedented datasets from the JWST. Developing a phenomenological model based on the halo mass functions in CDM and WDM models, we calculate high redshift (⁠|$z \gtrsim 6$|⁠), the stellar mass functions (SMF) and the associated stellar mass density (SMD) and the maximum stellar mass allowed in a given volume. We find that: (i) WDM as light as 1.5 keV is already disfavoured by the low-mass end of the SMF (stellar mass |$M_* \sim 10^7\,\rm M_\odot$|⁠) although caution must be exerted given the impact of lensing uncertainties; (ii) 1.5 keV WDM models predict SMD values that show a steep decrease from 108.8 to |$10^{2}\,\rm M_\odot \rm cMpc^{-3}$| from z ∼ 4 to 17 for |$M_* \gtrsim 10^8\,\rm M_\odot$|⁠ ; and (iii) the 1.5 keV WDM model predicts a sharp and earlier cut-off in the maximum stellar masses for a given number density (or volume) as compared to CDM or heavier WDM models. For example, with a number density of |$10^{-3}\,\rm {cMpc^{-3}}$|⁠ , 1.5 (3) KeV WDM models do not predict bound objects at |$z \gtrsim 12$| (18). Forthcoming JWST observations of multiple blank fields can therefore be used as a strong probe of WDM at an epoch inaccessible by other means. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a novel method to quantify the assembly histories of dark matter haloes with the redshift evolution of the mass-weighted spatial variance of their progenitor haloes, that is, the protohalo size history. We find that the protohalo size history for each individual halo at z ∼ 0 can be described by a double power-law function. The amplitude of the fitting function strongly correlates to the central-to-total stellar mass ratios of descendant haloes. The variation of the amplitude of the protohalo size history can induce a strong halo assembly bias effect for massive haloes. This effect is detectable in observation using the central-to-total stellar mass ratio as a proxy of the protohalo size. The correlation to the descendant central-to-total stellar mass ratio and the halo assembly bias effect seen in the protohalo size are much stronger than that seen in the commonly adopted half-mass formation time derived from the mass accretion history. This indicates that the information loss caused by the compression of halo merger trees to mass accretion histories can be captured by the protohalo size history. Protohalo size thus provides a useful quantity to connect protoclusters across cosmic time and to link protoclusters with their descendant clusters in observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detailed modelling of the spectro-spatial distributions of energetic electrons and protons in galactic discs and haloes of starburst galaxies (SBGs) is needed in order to follow their interactions with the magnetized interstellar medium and radiation fields, determine their radiative yields, and for estimating their residual spectral densities in intergalactic environments. We have developed a semi-analytical approach for calculating the particle spectro-spatial distributions in the disc and halo based on a diffusion model for particle propagation from acceleration sites in the central SB and disc regions, including all their relevant interaction modes. Important overall normalization of our models is based on previous modelling of the Galactic disc (with the galprop code), scaled to the higher star-formations rate in NGC253, and on spatially resolved radio measurements of the central SB and disc. These provide the essential input for determining the particle distributions and their predicted radiative yields in the outer disc and inner halo for a range of values of the key parameters that affect diffusion rate and energy losses. Results of our work clearly indicate that quantitative description of non-thermal emission in SBGs has to be based on modelling of the particle distributions in the entire disc, not just the central SB region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]