Probing the spatial and velocity anisotropies in stellar halos from the Aquarius simulations

TL;DR

This study investigates the spatial and velocity anisotropies in stellar halos from Aquarius simulations, revealing how substructures and halo shape influence anisotropy and orbital dynamics, thus shedding light on halo formation history.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of anisotropies in simulated stellar halos, highlighting the roles of substructures and shape in their development and kinematic properties.

Findings

Outer halo anisotropy is dominated by bound satellites.

Inner halo anisotropy is mainly due to diffuse substructures and shape.

Velocity anisotropy dips indicate radial to rotational orbit transitions.

Abstract

We analyze the spatial anisotropy and the velocity anisotropy in a set of mock stellar halos from the Aquarius simulations. The spatial anisotropy in each mock stellar halo rises progressively with the increasing distance from the halo centre, eventually reaching a maximum near the periphery. Excluding the bound satellites leads to a significant reduction of the spatial anisotropy in each halo. We compare the measured anisotropy in the mock stellar halos with that from their sphericalized versions where all the shape and substructure induced anisotropies are erased. The growth of spatial anisotropy persists throughout the entire halo when the bound satellites are present but remains limited within the inner halo ($<60 \, h^{-1}\, {\rm kpc}$) after their exclusion. This indicates that the spatial anisotropy in the inner halo is induced by the diffuse substructures and the halo shape whereas the outer halo anisotropy is dominated by the bound satellites. We find that the outer parts of the stellar halo are kinematically colder than the inner regions. The stellar orbits are predominantly radial but they become rotationally dominated at certain radii that are marked by the prominent dips in the velocity anisotropy. Most of these dips disappear after the removal of the satellites. A few shallow dips arise occasionally due to the presence of diffuse streams and clouds. Our analysis suggests that a combined study of the spatial and velocity anisotropies can reveal the structure and the assembly history of the stellar halos.