Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Article
  • Published:

Mass distribution in spiral galaxies

Abstract

The masses of a carefully selected sample of primary disk galaxies orbited by one or more satellite systems have been calculated both from the rotation of the disks and from the kinematics of the satellites. The ratio of these two mass estimates (χobs ) is sensitive to the presence of any extended halo and for satellite-primary pairs the mass distribution is significantly different from that of binary galaxies. Our data cannot be described by the heavy halo model with circular orbits, though extended haloes are a possibility if the satellite orbits are highly eccentric.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Faber, S. M. & Gallagher, J. S. A. Rev. Astr. Astrophys. 17, 135–187 (1979).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  2. van der Kruit, Proc. astr. Soc. Aust. 5, 136–143 (1983).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Hunter, J. H., Ball, R. & Gottesman, S. T. Mon. Not R. astr. Soc. 208, 1–14 (1984).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  4. Sellwood, J. A. in Internal Kinematics and Dynamics of Galaxies (ed. Athenassoula, E.) 197–202 (Reidel, Dordrecht, 1983).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  5. Geller, M. J. in Clusters and Groups of Galaxies (eds Mardirossian, F., Giuricin, G. & Mezzitti, M.) 353–365 (Reidel, Dordrecht, 1984).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  6. van Moorsel, G. A. thesis, Gröningen Univ. (1982).

  7. Gottesman, S. T. & Hunter, J. H. Jr Astrophys. J. 260, 65–69 (1982).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Peterson, S. Astrophys. J. 232, 20–33; Astrophys. Suppl. Ser. 40, 527–575 (1979).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Helou, G., Salperter, E. E. & Terzain, Y. Astr. J. 87, 1443–1464 (1982).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Lequeux, J. Astr. Astrophys. 125, 394–395 (1983).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  11. Nilson, P. Uppsala General Catalog of Galaxies (Uppsala Astron. Obs. Ann. vol. 6, 1973).

    Google Scholar 

  12. Gottesman, S. T., Hunter, J. H. Jr & Shostak, G. S. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 202, 21–24 (1983).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  13. Sancisi, R., van Woerden, H., Davies, R. D. & Hart, L. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 210, 497–514 (1984).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Shostak, G. S., Hummel, E., Shaver, P. A., van der Hulst, J. M. & van der Kruit, Astr. Astrophys. 115, 293–307 (1982).

    ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Huchtmeier, W. K., Richter, O. G., Bohenstengel, H. D. & Hauschildt, M. ESO Preprint no. 250 (1983).

  16. Rubin, V. C., Ford, W. K. & Thonnard, N. Astrophys. J. 238, 471–487 (1980).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Gottesman, S. T. & Hawarden, T. G. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 219, 759–775 (1986).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Gottesman, S. T., Ball, R., Hunter, J. H. & Huntley, J. M. Astrophys. J. 286, 471–490 (1984).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Hunter, J. H., Ball, R., Huntley, J. M., England, M. & Gottesman, S. T. Astrophys. J. (submitted).

  20. de Vaucouleurs, G., de Vaucouleurs, A. & Corwin, H. G. Jr Second Reference Catalog of Bright Galaxies (University of Texas, Austin, 1976).

    Google Scholar 

  21. Sandage, A. & Tammann, G. A. A Revised Shapley Ames Catalog of Bright Galaxies (Carnegie Institution, Washington DC, 1981).

    Google Scholar 

  22. Roberts, M. S., Whitehurst, R. N. & Cram, T. R. IAU Symp. No. 77, 169–173 (1978).

  23. Einasto, J. & Lynden-Bell, D. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 199, 67–80 (1982).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  24. Dressler, A. & Sandage, A. Astrophys. J. 265, 664–680 (1983).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  25. Ball, R. Astrophys. J. 307, 453–471 (1986).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. van Albada, G. D. thesis, Gröningen Univ. (1978).

  27. McCutchen, W. H. & Davies, R. D. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 150, 337–357 (1970).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  28. de Vaucouleurs, G. Astrophys. J. 227, 729–755 (1979).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Erickson, L., Gottesman, S. & Hunter, J. Mass distribution in spiral galaxies. Nature 325, 779–782 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1038/325779a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/325779a0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing