Prospects for Detecting Gaps in Globular Cluster Stellar Streams in External Galaxies with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Aganze, Christian, Pearson, Sarah, Starkenburg, Tjitske, Contardo, Gabriella, Johnston, Kathryn V., Tavangar, Kiyan, Price-Whelan, Adrian M., Burgasser, Adam J.
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2023
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author Aganze, Christian
Pearson, Sarah
Starkenburg, Tjitske
Contardo, Gabriella
Johnston, Kathryn V.
Tavangar, Kiyan
Price-Whelan, Adrian M.
Burgasser, Adam J.
author_facet Aganze, Christian
Pearson, Sarah
Starkenburg, Tjitske
Contardo, Gabriella
Johnston, Kathryn V.
Tavangar, Kiyan
Price-Whelan, Adrian M.
Burgasser, Adam J.
contents Stellar streams form through the tidal disruption of satellite galaxies or globular clusters orbiting a host galaxy. Globular cluster streams are exciting since they are thin (dynamically cold) and, therefore sensitive to perturbations from low-mass subhalos. Since the subhalo mass function differs depending on the dark matter composition, these gaps can provide unique constraints on dark matter models. However, current samples are limited to the Milky Way. With its large field of view, deep imaging sensitivity, and high angular resolution, the upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (Roman) presents a unique opportunity to increase the number of observed streams and gaps significantly. This paper presents a first exploration of the prospects for detecting gaps in streams in M31 and other nearby galaxies with resolved stars. We simulate the formation of gaps in a Palomar-5-like stream and generate mock observations of these gaps with background stars in M31 and the foreground Milky Way stellar fields. We assess Roman's ability to detect gaps out to 10 Mpc through visual inspection and with the gap-finding tool ${\texttt{FindTheGap}}$. We conclude that gaps of $\approx 1.5$ kpc in streams that are created from subhalos of masses $\geq5 \times 10^6$M$_{\odot}$ are detectable within a 2-3 Mpc volume in exposures of 1000s to 1 hour. This volume contains $\approx 150$ galaxies, including $\approx 8$ galaxies with luminosities $>10^{9}~$L$_{\odot}$. Large samples of stream gaps in external galaxies will open up a new era of statistical analyses of gap characteristics in stellar streams and help constrain dark matter models.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2305_12045
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Prospects for Detecting Gaps in Globular Cluster Stellar Streams in External Galaxies with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
Aganze, Christian
Pearson, Sarah
Starkenburg, Tjitske
Contardo, Gabriella
Johnston, Kathryn V.
Tavangar, Kiyan
Price-Whelan, Adrian M.
Burgasser, Adam J.
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Stellar streams form through the tidal disruption of satellite galaxies or globular clusters orbiting a host galaxy. Globular cluster streams are exciting since they are thin (dynamically cold) and, therefore sensitive to perturbations from low-mass subhalos. Since the subhalo mass function differs depending on the dark matter composition, these gaps can provide unique constraints on dark matter models. However, current samples are limited to the Milky Way. With its large field of view, deep imaging sensitivity, and high angular resolution, the upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (Roman) presents a unique opportunity to increase the number of observed streams and gaps significantly. This paper presents a first exploration of the prospects for detecting gaps in streams in M31 and other nearby galaxies with resolved stars. We simulate the formation of gaps in a Palomar-5-like stream and generate mock observations of these gaps with background stars in M31 and the foreground Milky Way stellar fields. We assess Roman's ability to detect gaps out to 10 Mpc through visual inspection and with the gap-finding tool ${\texttt{FindTheGap}}$. We conclude that gaps of $\approx 1.5$ kpc in streams that are created from subhalos of masses $\geq5 \times 10^6$M$_{\odot}$ are detectable within a 2-3 Mpc volume in exposures of 1000s to 1 hour. This volume contains $\approx 150$ galaxies, including $\approx 8$ galaxies with luminosities $>10^{9}~$L$_{\odot}$. Large samples of stream gaps in external galaxies will open up a new era of statistical analyses of gap characteristics in stellar streams and help constrain dark matter models.
title Prospects for Detecting Gaps in Globular Cluster Stellar Streams in External Galaxies with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2305.12045