Gaia Data Release 3: Mapping the asymmetric disc of the Milky Way

TL;DR

This paper utilizes Gaia DR3 data to map the Milky Way's asymmetric disc, revealing detailed spiral structures, the bar's kinematic signature, and streaming motions, significantly advancing our understanding of Galactic morphology and dynamics.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive mapping of the Milky Way's non-axisymmetric features using Gaia DR3 stellar populations and velocities, highlighting new structural and kinematic insights.

Findings

Mapping of spiral arms extending up to 10 kpc from the Sun.

Detection of the Galactic bar's kinematic signature in RGB stars.

Identification of streaming motions possibly linked to spiral arms or bar resonances.

Abstract

With the most recent Gaia data release the number of sources with complete 6D phase space information (position and velocity) has increased to well over 33 million stars, while stellar astrophysical parameters are provided for more than 470 million sources, in addition to the identification of over 11 million variable stars. Using the astrophysical parameters and variability classifications provided in Gaia DR3, we select various stellar populations to explore and identify non-axisymmetric features in the disc of the Milky Way in both configuration and velocity space. Using more about 580 thousand sources identified as hot OB stars, together with 988 known open clusters younger than 100 million years, we map the spiral structure associated with star formation 4-5 kpc from the Sun. We select over 2800 Classical Cepheids younger than 200 million years, which show spiral features extending as far as 10 kpc from the Sun in the outer disc. We also identify more than 8.7 million sources on the red giant branch (RGB), of which 5.7 million have line-of-sight velocities, allowing the velocity field of the Milky Way to be mapped as far as 8 kpc from the Sun, including the inner disc. The spiral structure revealed by the young populations is consistent with recent results using Gaia EDR3 astrometry and source lists based on near infrared photometry, showing the Local (Orion) arm to be at least 8 kpc long, and an outer arm consistent with what is seen in HI surveys, which seems to be a continuation of the Perseus arm into the third quadrant. Meanwhile, the subset of RGB stars with velocities clearly reveals the large scale kinematic signature of the bar in the inner disc, as well as evidence of streaming motions in the outer disc that might be associated with spiral arms or bar resonances. (abridged)