Related papers: Galactic mapping with general relativity and the o…
Galactic warps represent an old unresolved problem, since the discovery, at the end of the fifties, of the HI warp of the Milky Way. In this paper, we propose a new scenario explaining a large fraction of the observed optical warps. Based…
The cold dark matter model successfully explains both the emergence and evolution of cosmic structures on large scales and, when we include a cosmological constant, the properties of the homogeneous and isotropic Universe. However, the cold…
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…
Observations of galaxies suggest a one-to-one analytic relation between the inferred gravity of dark matter at any radius and the enclosed baryonic mass, a relation summarized by Milgrom's law of modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND). However,…
Despite the Milky Way's proximity to us, our knowledge of its dark matter halo is fairly limited, and there is still considerable uncertainty in its halo mass. Many past techniques have been limited by assumptions such as the Galaxy being…
We have studied the mass distribution in the lensing galaxy 2237+0305 using constraints from both gravitational lensing and photometric and spectroscopic observations. We find that with sufficient dynamical information we can constrain the…
Since gravitational lensing effects directly probe inhomogeneities of dark matter, lensing-galaxy cross-correlations can provide us important information on the relation between dark matter and galaxy distributions, i.e., the bias. In this…
It is a well-known fact that the gravitational effect of dark matter in galaxies is only noticeable when the orbital accelerations drop below $a_0 \simeq 2\times 10^{-8}$ cm s$^{-1}$ (Milgrom's Law). This peculiarity of the dynamic…
Observations of the clustering of galaxies can provide useful information about the distribution of dark matter in the Universe. In order to extract accurate cosmological parameters from galaxy surveys, it is important to understand how the…
We have compiled a new sample of 240 halo objects with accurate distance and radial velocity measurements, including globular clusters, satellite galaxies, field blue horizontal branch stars and red giant stars from the Spaghetti survey.…
The dark matter (DM) haloes around spiral galaxies appear to conspire with their baryonic content: empirically, significant amounts of DM are inferred only below a universal characteristic acceleration scale. Moreover, the discrepancy…
A novel interpretation of MOND is presented. For galactic data, in addition to Newtonian acceleration, there is an attractive acceleration peaking at Milgrom's parameter a_0. The peak lies within experimental error where a_0 = cH_0/2\pi and…
I review the connection between dynamics and the baryonic mass distribution in rotationally supported galaxies. The enclosed dynamical mass-to-light ratio increases with decreasing galaxy luminosity and surface brightness. The correlation…
Gravitational lensing is one of a number of methods used to probe the distribution of dark mass in the Universe. On galactic scales, complementary techniques include the use of stellar kinematics, kinematics and morphology of the neutral…
We try to understand the trends in the mass density slopes as a function of galaxy properties. We use the results from the best Jeans Anisotropic Modelling (JAM) of the integral-field stellar kinematics for near 6000 galaxies from the MaNGA…
Several recent studies have shown how to properly calculate the observed clustering of galaxies in a relativistic context, and uncovered corrections to the Newtonian calculation that become significant on scales near the horizon. Here, we…
We present a systematic analysis of the rotation curves of 187 galaxies with masses greater than 10^10 M_sol, with atomic gas masses from the GALEX Arecibo Sloan Survey (GASS), and with follow-up long-slit spectroscopy from the MMT. Our…
The Milky Way is a unique laboratory, where stellar properties can be measured and analyzed in detail. In particular, stars in the older populations encode information on the mechanisms that led to the formation of our Galaxy. In this…
Gravity is the driving force of star formation. Although gravity is caused by the presence of matter, its role in complex regions is still unsettled. One effective way to study the pattern of gravity is to compute the accretion it exerts on…
Modified gravity theories may provide an alternative to dark energy to explain cosmic acceleration. We argue that the observational program developed to test dark energy needs to be augmented to capture new tests of gravity on astrophysical…