Group finding in the stellar halo using M-giants in 2MASS: An extended view of the Pisces Overdensity?

TL;DR

This study uses a hierarchical group-finding algorithm on 2MASS M-giants to identify and analyze stellar halo structures, revealing both known and new features, including an extended Pisces overdensity, with implications for understanding halo substructures.

Contribution

It introduces a density-based hierarchical group-finding method applied to 2MASS M-giants, uncovering new halo structures and extending the known extent of the Pisces overdensity.

Findings

Identified 16 high-latitude stellar halo structures, 10 of which are previously known.

Discovered a new, likely satellite remnant structure in the stellar halo.

Extended the Pisces overdensity beyond SDSS Stripe 82, revealing a more complex morphology.

Abstract

A density based hierarchical group-finding algorithm is used to identify stellar halo structures in a catalog of M-giants from the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS). The intrinsic brightness of M-giant stars means that this catalog probes deep into the halo where substructures are expected to be abundant and easy to detect. Our analysis reveals 16 structures at high Galactic latitude (greater than 15 degree), of which 10 have been previously identified. Among the six new structures two could plausibly be due to masks applied to the data, one is associated with a strong extinction region and one is probably a part of the Monoceros ring. Another one originates at low latitudes, suggesting some contamination from disk stars, but also shows protrusions extending to high latitudes, implying that it could be a real feature in the stellar halo. The last remaining structure is free from the defects discussed above and hence is very likely a satellite remnant. Although the extinction in the direction of the structure is very low, the structure does match a low temperature feature in the dust maps. While this casts some doubt on its origin, the low temperature feature could plausibly be due to real dust in the structure itself. The angular position and distance of this structure encompass the Pisces overdensity traced by RR Lyraes in Stripe 82 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). However, the 2MASS M-giants indicate that the structure is much more extended than what is visible with the SDSS, with the point of peak density lying just outside Stripe 82. The morphology of the structure is more like a cloud than a stream and reminiscent of that seen in simulations of satellites disrupting along highly eccentric orbits.