Limits on the local density of dark matter

TL;DR

This paper presents a new method to accurately estimate the local dark matter density using stellar kinematics, addressing systematic issues with previous approaches by employing Jeans equations and MCMC techniques.

Contribution

Introduces an unbiased, robust method for measuring local dark matter density from stellar kinematics using Jeans equations and MCMC, validated on simulated and real data.

Findings

Method reduces systematic biases in dark matter density estimates.

Application to real data yields consistent local dark matter density values.

Demonstrates improved accuracy over previous techniques.

Abstract

We study the systematic problems in determining the local dark matter density $\rho_{dm}(R_\odot)$ from kinematics of stars in the Solar Neighbourhood, using a simulated Milky Way-like galaxy. We introduce a new unbiased method for recovering $\rho_{dm}(R_\odot)$ based on the moments of the Jeans equations, combined with a Monte Carlo Markov Chain technique and apply it to real data. ov