Local Group timing in Milgromian dynamics. A past Milky Way-Andromeda encounter at z>0.8

TL;DR

This study explores the possibility of a past close encounter between the Milky Way and Andromeda under Milgromian dynamics, suggesting such an event occurred 7-11 billion years ago and could explain certain galactic features.

Contribution

The paper provides the first orbital integration of the Local Group in Milgromian dynamics, proposing a past fly-by encounter that challenges dark matter-based models.

Findings

A past MW-M31 fly-by likely occurred 7-11 Gyr ago.

The encounter's close approach (<55 kpc) could influence disk and satellite galaxy properties.

Absence of dark matter halo is crucial for avoiding a merger during the encounter.

Abstract

The Local Group timing has been one of the first historical probes of the missing mass problem. Whilst modern cosmological probes indicate that pure baryonic dynamics is not sufficient on the largest scales, nearby galaxies and small galaxy groups persistently obey Milgrom's MOND law, which implies that dynamics at small scales is possibly entirely predicted by the baryons. Here, we investigate the Local Group timing in this context of Milgromian dynamics. Making use of the latest measured proper motions and radial velocities for Andromeda and the Magellanic clouds, we integrate backwards their orbits by making use of the Milgromian two-body equation of motion. We find that, with the currently measured proper motions and radial velocity of M31, MOND would imply that the Milky Way and M31 first moved apart via Hubble expansion after birth, but then necessarily got attracted again by the Milgromian gravitational attraction, and had a past fly-by encounter before coming to their present positions. This encounter would most probably have happened 7 to 11 Gyr ago (0.8<z<3). The absence of a dark matter halo and its associated dynamical friction is necessary for such a close encounter not to trigger a merger. Observational arguments which could exclude or favour such a past encounter would thus be very important in view of falsifying or vindicating Milgromian dynamics on the scale of the Local Group. Interestingly, the closest approach of the encounter is small enough (<55 kpc) to have severe consequences on the disk dynamics, including perhaps thick disk formation, and on the satellite systems of both galaxies. The ages of the satellite galaxies and of the young halo globular clusters, all of which form the vast polar structure around the Milky Way, are consistent with these objects having been born in this encounter.