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Stellar dynamics and dark matter in Local Group dwarf galaxies

Nature Astronomy volume 6, pages 659–672 (2022)Cite this article

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A Publisher Correction to this article was published on 17 October 2022

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Abstract

When interpreted within the standard framework of Newtonian gravity and dynamics, the kinematics of stars and gas in dwarf galaxies reveals that most of these systems are completely dominated by their dark matter halos. These dwarf galaxies are thus among the best astrophysical laboratories to study the structure of dark halos and the nature of dark matter. We review the properties of the dwarf galaxies of the Local Group from the point of view of stellar dynamics. After describing the observed kinematics of their stellar components and providing an overview of the dynamical modelling techniques, we look into the dark matter content and distribution of these galaxies, as inferred from the combination of observed data and dynamical models. We also briefly touch upon the prospects of using nearby dwarf galaxies as targets for indirect detection of dark matter via annihilation or decay emission.

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Fig. 1: Global properties of the stellar component of Local Group DGs.
Fig. 2: Dynamical mass of LG DGs.
Fig. 3: Mass and density profiles of the Draco dSph.
Fig. 4: Mass and density profiles of the Fornax dSph.
Fig. 5: Mass and density profiles of the Sculptor dSph.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to N. Amorisco, K. Hayashi, M. Kaplinghat, R. Pascale, J. Read, M. Valli and L. Zhu for sharing their data. G.B. acknowledges support from the Agencia Estatal de Investigación del Ministerio de Ciencia en Innovación (AEI-MICIN) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under grant number AYA2017-89076-P, the AEI under grant number CEX2019-000920-S and the AEI-MICIN under grant number PID2020-118778GB-I00/10.13039/501100011033.

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  1. These authors contributed equally: Giuseppina Battaglia and Carlo Nipoti.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Spain

    Giuseppina Battaglia

  2. Department of Astrophysics, University of La Laguna, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Spain

    Giuseppina Battaglia

  3. Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia ‘Augusto Righi’, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Carlo Nipoti

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G.B. and C.N. contributed equally to the design and writing of this Review.

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Battaglia, G., Nipoti, C. Stellar dynamics and dark matter in Local Group dwarf galaxies. Nat Astron 6, 659–672 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-022-01638-7

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