Publication Date
12-20-2024
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Astrophysical Journal
Volume
978
Issue
1
DOI
10.3847/1538-4357/ad8cd0
Abstract
NGC 1052-DF2 and -DF4 are two ultradiffuse galaxies that have been reported as deficient in dark matter and associated with the same galaxy group. Recent findings suggest that DF2 and DF4 are part of a large linear substructure of dwarf galaxies that could have been formed from a high-velocity head-on encounter of two gas-rich galaxies, known as a “bullet dwarf” collision. Based on new observations from the Hubble Space Telescope, combined with existing imaging from the u band to mid-infrared, we test the bullet dwarf scenario by studying the morphologies and stellar populations of the trail dwarfs. We find no significant morphological differences between the trail dwarfs and other dwarfs in the group, while for both populations, their photometric major axes unexpectedly align parallel with the trail. We find that the trail dwarfs have significantly older ages and higher metallicities than the comparison sample, supporting the distinctiveness of the trail. These observations provide key constraints for any formation model, and we argue that they are currently best explained by the bullet dwarf collision scenario, with additional strong tests anticipated with future observations.
Funding Number
AST-2308390
Funding Sponsor
Space Telescope Science Institute
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Department
Physics and Astronomy
Recommended Citation
Yimeng Tang, Aaron J. Romanowsky, Pieter G. van Dokkum, T. H. Jarrett, Kevin A. Bundy, Maria Luisa Buzzo, Shany Danieli, Jonah S. Gannon, Michael A. Keim, Seppo Laine, and Zili Shen. "Testing the Bullet Dwarf Collision Scenario in the NGC 1052 Group through Morphologies and Stellar Populations" Astrophysical Journal (2024). https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8cd0
