The Multidimensional Milky Way

TL;DR

This paper discusses how upcoming and ongoing surveys will provide a comprehensive multidimensional view of the Milky Way, enhancing our understanding of galaxy formation, dark matter, and cosmology.

Contribution

It highlights the potential scientific breakthroughs enabled by new multidimensional data from astrometric, spectroscopic, and photometric surveys of the Milky Way.

Findings

Anticipated detailed 3D mapping of the Galaxy.

Improved constraints on dark matter distribution.

Insights into galaxy formation processes.

Abstract

Studying our Galaxy, the Milky Way (MW), gives us a close-up view of the interplay between cosmology, dark matter, and galaxy formation. In the next decade our understanding of the MW's dynamics, stellar populations, and structure will undergo a revolution thanks to planned and proposed astrometric, spectroscopic and photometric surveys, building on recent advances by the Gaia astrometric survey. Together, these new efforts will measure three-dimensional positions and velocities and numerous chemical abundances for stars to the MW's edge and well into the Local Group, leading to a complete multidimensional view of our Galaxy. Studies of the multidimensional Milky Way beyond the Gaia frontier---from the edge of the Galactic disk to the edge of our Galaxy's dark matter halo---will unlock new scientific advances across astrophysics, from constraints on dark matter to insights into galaxy formation.