A galactic tide is a tidal force experienced by objects subject to the gravitational field of a galaxy such as the Milky Way. Particular areas of interest concerning galactic tides include galactic collisions, the disruption of dwarf or satellite galaxies, and the Milky Way's tidal effect on the Oort cloud of the Solar System.
Tidal forces are dependent on the gradient of a gravitational field, rather than its strength, and so tidal effects are usually limited to the immediate surroundings of a galaxy. Two large galaxies undergoing collisions or passing nearby each other will be subjected to very large tidal forces, often producing the most visually striking demonstrations of galactic tides in action.
Two interacting galaxies will rarely (if ever) collide head-on, and the tidal forces will distort each galaxy along an axis pointing roughly towards and away from its perturber. As the two galaxies briefly orbit each other, these distorted regions, which are pulled away from the main body of each galaxy, will be sheared by the galaxy's differential rotation and flung off into intergalactic space, forming tidal tails . Such tails are typically strongly curved. If a tail appears to be straight, it is probably being viewed edge-on. The stars and gas that comprise the tails will have been pulled from the easily distorted galactic discs (or other extremities) of one or both bodies, rather than the gravitationally bound galactic centers. [1] Two very prominent examples of collisions producing tidal tails are the Mice Galaxies and the Antennae Galaxies.
Just as the Moon raises two water tides on opposite sides of the Earth, so a galactic tide produces two arms in its galactic companion. While a large tail is formed if the perturbed galaxy is equal to or less massive than its partner, if it is significantly more massive than the perturbing galaxy, then the trailing arm will be relatively minor, and the leading arm, sometimes called a bridge, will be more prominent. [1] Tidal bridges are typically harder to distinguish than tidal tails: in the first instance, the bridge may be absorbed by the passing galaxy or the resulting merged galaxy, making it visible for a shorter duration than a typical large tail. Secondly, if one of the two galaxies is in the foreground, then the second galaxy — and the bridge between them — may be partially obscured. Together, these effects can make it hard to see where one galaxy ends and the next begins. Tidal loops, where a tail joins with its parent galaxy at both ends, are rarer still. [2]
Because tidal effects are strongest in the immediate vicinity of a galaxy, satellite galaxies are particularly likely to be affected. Such an external force upon a satellite can produce ordered motions within it, leading to large-scale observable effects: the interior structure and motions of a dwarf satellite galaxy may be severely affected by a galactic tide, inducing rotation (as with the tides of the Earth's oceans) or an anomalous mass-to-luminosity ratio. [3] Satellite galaxies can also be subjected to the same tidal stripping that occurs in galactic collisions, where stars and gas are torn from the extremities of a galaxy, possibly to be absorbed by its companion. The dwarf galaxy M32, a satellite galaxy of Andromeda, may have lost its spiral arms to tidal stripping, while a high star formation rate in the remaining core may be the result of tidally-induced motions of the remaining molecular clouds [4] (Because tidal forces can knead and compress the interstellar gas clouds inside galaxies, they induce large amounts of star formation in small satellites.)
The stripping mechanism is the same as between two comparable galaxies, although its comparatively weak gravitational field ensures that only the satellite, not the host galaxy, is affected. If the satellite is very small compared to the host, the tidal debris tails produced are likely to be symmetric, and follow a very similar orbit, effectively tracing the satellite's path. [5] However, if the satellite is reasonably large—typically over one ten thousandth the mass of its host—then the satellite's own gravity may affect the tails, breaking the symmetry and accelerating the tails in different directions. The resulting structure is dependent on both the mass and orbit of the satellite, and the mass and structure of the conjectured galactic halo around the host, and may provide a means of probing the dark matter potential of a galaxy such as the Milky Way. [6]
Over many orbits of its parent galaxy, or if the orbit passes too close to it, a dwarf satellite may eventually be completely disrupted, to form a tidal stream of stars and gas wrapping around the larger body. It has been suggested that the extended discs of gas and stars around some galaxies, such as Andromeda, may be the result of the complete tidal disruption (and subsequent merger with the parent galaxy) of a dwarf satellite galaxy. [7]
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Tidal effects are also present within a galaxy, where their gradients are likely to be steepest. This can have consequences for the formation of stars and planetary systems. Typically, a star's gravity will dominate within its own system, with only the passage of other stars substantially affecting dynamics. However, at the outer reaches of the system, the star's gravity is weak and galactic tides may be significant. In the Solar System, the theoretical Oort cloud, source of most long-period comets, lies in this transitional region.
The Oort cloud is a vast shell surrounding the Solar System, possibly over a light-year in radius. Across such a vast distance, the gradient of the Milky Way's gravitational field plays a far more noticeable role. Because of this gradient, galactic tides may then deform an otherwise spherical Oort cloud, stretching the cloud in the direction of the galactic centre and compressing it along the other two axes, just as the Earth distends in response to the gravity of the Moon.
The Sun's gravity is sufficiently weak at such a distance that these small galactic perturbations are enough to dislodge some planetesimals from such distant orbits, sending them towards the Sun and planets by significantly reducing their perihelia. [8] Such a body, being composed of a rock and ice mixture, would become a comet when subjected to the increased solar radiation present in the inner Solar System.
It has been suggested that the galactic tide may also contribute to the formation of an Oort cloud, by increasing the perihelia of planetesimals with large aphelia. [9] This shows that the effects of the galactic tide are quite complex, and depend heavily on the behaviour of individual objects within a planetary system. However, cumulatively, the effect can be quite significant; up to 90% of all comets originating from an Oort cloud may be the result of the galactic tide. [10]
A globular cluster is a spheroidal conglomeration of stars. Globular clusters are bound together by gravity, with a higher concentration of stars towards their centers. They can contain anywhere from tens of thousands to many millions of member stars. Their name is derived from Latin globulus. Globular clusters are occasionally known simply as "globulars".
The Oort cloud, sometimes called the Öpik–Oort cloud, is theorized to be a vast cloud of icy planetesimals surrounding the Sun at distances ranging from 2,000 to 200,000 AU. The concept of such a cloud was proposed in 1950 by the Dutch astronomer Jan Oort, in whose honor the idea was named. Oort proposed that the bodies in this cloud replenish and keep constant the number of long-period comets entering the inner Solar System—where they are eventually consumed and destroyed during close approaches to the Sun.
Star clusters are large groups of stars held together by self-gravitation. Two main types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of ten thousand to millions of old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters are more loosely clustered groups of stars, generally containing fewer than a few hundred members, and are often very young. Open clusters become disrupted over time by the gravitational influence of giant molecular clouds as they move through the galaxy, but cluster members will continue to move in broadly the same direction through space even though they are no longer gravitationally bound; they are then known as a stellar association, sometimes also referred to as a moving group.
The rotation curve of a disc galaxy is a plot of the orbital speeds of visible stars or gas in that galaxy versus their radial distance from that galaxy's centre. It is typically rendered graphically as a plot, and the data observed from each side of a spiral galaxy are generally asymmetric, so that data from each side are averaged to create the curve. A significant discrepancy exists between the experimental curves observed, and a curve derived by applying gravity theory to the matter observed in a galaxy. Theories involving dark matter are the main postulated solutions to account for the variance.
The Triangulum Galaxy is a spiral galaxy 2.73 million light-years (ly) from Earth in the constellation Triangulum. It is catalogued as Messier 33 or NGC (New General Catalogue) 598. With the D25 isophotal diameter of 18.74 kiloparsecs (61,100 light-years), the Triangulum Galaxy is the third-largest member of the Local Group of galaxies, behind the Andromeda Galaxy and the Milky Way.
The dwarf galaxy problem, also known as the missing satellites problem, arises from a mismatch between observed dwarf galaxy numbers and collisionless numerical cosmological simulations that predict the evolution of the distribution of matter in the universe. In simulations, dark matter clusters hierarchically, in ever increasing numbers of halo "blobs" as halos' components' sizes become smaller-and-smaller. However, although there seem to be enough observed normal-sized galaxies to match the simulated distribution of dark matter halos of comparable mass, the number of observed dwarf galaxies is orders of magnitude lower than expected from such simulation.
A dwarf galaxy is a small galaxy composed of about 1000 up to several billion stars, as compared to the Milky Way's 200–400 billion stars. The Large Magellanic Cloud, which closely orbits the Milky Way and contains over 30 billion stars, is sometimes classified as a dwarf galaxy; others consider it a full-fledged galaxy. Dwarf galaxies' formation and activity are thought to be heavily influenced by interactions with larger galaxies. Astronomers identify numerous types of dwarf galaxies, based on their shape and composition.
A dwarf spheroidal galaxy (dSph) is a term in astronomy applied to small, low-luminosity galaxies with very little dust and an older stellar population. They are found in the Local Group as companions to the Milky Way and to systems that are companions to the Andromeda Galaxy (M31). While similar to dwarf elliptical galaxies in appearance and properties such as little to no gas or dust or recent star formation, they are approximately spheroidal in shape and generally have lower luminosity.
Planetary migration occurs when a planet or other body in orbit around a star interacts with a disk of gas or planetesimals, resulting in the alteration of its orbital parameters, especially its semi-major axis. Planetary migration is the most likely explanation for hot Jupiters. The generally accepted theory of planet formation from a protoplanetary disk predicts that such planets cannot form so close to their stars, as there is insufficient mass at such small radii and the temperature is too high to allow the formation of rocky or icy planetesimals.
The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes the Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye. The term Milky Way is a translation of the Latin via lactea, from the Greek γαλακτικὸς κύκλος, meaning "milky circle". From Earth, the Milky Way appears as a band because its disk-shaped structure is viewed from within. Galileo Galilei first resolved the band of light into individual stars with his telescope in 1610. Until the early 1920s, most astronomers thought that the Milky Way contained all the stars in the Universe. Following the 1920 Great Debate between the astronomers Harlow Shapley and Heber Doust Curtis, observations by Edwin Hubble showed that the Milky Way is just one of many galaxies.
A satellite galaxy is a smaller companion galaxy that travels on bound orbits within the gravitational potential of a more massive and luminous host galaxy. Satellite galaxies and their constituents are bound to their host galaxy, in the same way that planets within our own solar system are gravitationally bound to the Sun. While most satellite galaxies are dwarf galaxies, satellite galaxies of large galaxy clusters can be much more massive. The Milky Way is orbited by about fifty satellite galaxies, the largest of which is the Large Magellanic Cloud.
The Milky Way has several smaller galaxies gravitationally bound to it, as part of the Milky Way subgroup, which is part of the local galaxy cluster, the Local Group.
Interacting galaxies are galaxies whose gravitational fields result in a disturbance of one another. An example of a minor interaction is a satellite galaxy disturbing the primary galaxy's spiral arms. An example of a major interaction is a galactic collision, which may lead to a galaxy merger.
The Magellanic Stream is a stream of high-velocity clouds of gas extending from the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds over 100° through the Galactic south pole of the Milky Way. The stream contains a gaseous feature dubbed the leading arm. The stream was sighted in 1965 and its relation to the Magellanic Clouds was established in 1974.
The formation of the Solar System began about 4.6 billion years ago with the gravitational collapse of a small part of a giant molecular cloud. Most of the collapsing mass collected in the center, forming the Sun, while the rest flattened into a protoplanetary disk out of which the planets, moons, asteroids, and other small Solar System bodies formed.
In astronomy, stellar kinematics is the observational study or measurement of the kinematics or motions of stars through space.
Retrograde motion in astronomy is, in general, orbital or rotational motion of an object in the direction opposite the rotation of its primary, that is, the central object. It may also describe other motions such as precession or nutation of an object's rotational axis. Prograde or direct motion is more normal motion in the same direction as the primary rotates. However, "retrograde" and "prograde" can also refer to an object other than the primary if so described. The direction of rotation is determined by an inertial frame of reference, such as distant fixed stars.
This glossary of astronomy is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to astronomy and cosmology, their sub-disciplines, and related fields. Astronomy is concerned with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth. The field of astronomy features an extensive vocabulary and a significant amount of jargon.
In astronomy, the Sagittarius Stream is a long, complex structure made of stars that wrap around the Milky Way galaxy in an orbit that nearly crosses the galactic poles. It consists of tidally stripped stars from the Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy, resulting from the process of merging with the Milky Way over a period of billions of years.
Galaxy X is a postulated dark satellite dwarf galaxy of the Milky Way Galaxy. If it exists, it would be composed mostly of dark matter and interstellar gas with few stars. Its proposed location is some 90 kpc (290 kly) from the Sun, behind the disk of the Milky Way, and some 12 kpc (39 kly) in extent. Galactic coordinates would be (l= -27.4°,b=-1.08°).
