Galaxy Disruption in a Halo of Dark Matter
Duncan A. Forbes,1*
Michael A. Beasley,1
Kenji Bekki,2
Jean P. Brodie,3
Jay Strader3
The relics of disrupted satellite galaxies have been found around the Milky Way and Andromeda, but direct evidence of a satellite galaxy in the early stages of disruption has remained elusive. We have discovered a dwarf satellite galaxy in the process of being torn apart by gravitational tidal forces as it merges with a larger galaxy's dark matter halo. Our results illustrate the morphological transformation of dwarf galaxies by tidal interaction and the continued buildup of galaxy halos.
1 Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, Swinburne University of Technology, Post Office Box 218, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia. 2 School of Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia. 3 Lick Observatory, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: dforbes{at}swin.edu.au
