A signature of the internal reionisation of the Milky Way?

TL;DR

This paper introduces a semi-analytical model to study how the spatial structure of reionisation affects the distribution and properties of Milky Way satellite galaxies, highlighting potential signatures of internal reionisation.

Contribution

It compares external and internal reionisation scenarios, showing that internal reionisation produces a more extended satellite distribution consistent with observations.

Findings

Internal reionisation leads to a more extended satellite distribution.

Both models match luminosity functions and mass-to-light ratios.

Structural signatures of reionisation can be observed in satellite distributions.

Abstract

We present a new semi-analytical model of the population of satellite galaxies of the Milky Way, aimed at estimating the effect of the spatial structure of reionisation at galaxy scale on the properties of the satellites. In this model reionisation can be either: (A) externally-driven and uniform, or (B) internally-driven, by the most massive progenitor of the Milky-Way. In the latter scenario the propagation of the ionisation front and photon dilution introduce a delay in the photo-evaporation of the outer satellites' gas with respect to the inner satellites. As a consequence, outer satellites experience a longer period of star formation than those in the inner halo. We use simple models to account for star formation, the propagation of the ionisation front, photo-evaporation and observational biases. Both scenarios yield a model satellite population at z=0 that matches the observed luminosity function and mass-to-light ratios. However, the predicted population for scenario (B) is significantly more extended spatially than for scenario (A), by about 0.3 dex in distance, resulting in a much better match to the observations. The survival of this structural signature imprinted by the local UV field during reionisation on the radial distribution of satellites makes it a promising tool for studying the reionisation epoch at galaxy scale in the Milky Way and nearby galaxies resolved in stars with forthcoming large surveys. However, more work is needed to determine how the effect reported here can be disentangled from that of cosmic variance between different realisations of Milky Way haloes.