Observational evidence of tidal torque in the primordial Universe

TL;DR

This study provides the first robust observational evidence supporting tidal torque theory by demonstrating a strong correlation between observed galaxy gas angular momentum and primordial density field predictions, enabling new cosmological insights.

Contribution

It offers the first conclusive observational confirmation of tidal torque theory using galaxy gas angular momentum data, linking early universe conditions to present structures.

Findings

Strong 7σ correlation between observed and predicted angular momentum directions.

First observational confirmation of tidal torque theory.

Potential for cosmological measurements of neutrino mass and parameters.

Abstract

Tidal torque theory (TTT) predicts that galaxy angular momenta are imprinted by the early tidal field acting on their proto-structures, which are preserved through cosmic evolution and provide the potentially most precise measurement of the early universe. We test this prediction using the gas component of central massive elliptical galaxies, whose angular momenta respond sensitively to external torques. By comparing the observed gas angular momentum vectors with those predicted from the primordial density field reconstructed by ELUCID for the nearby universe, we conclusively detect a strong direction correlation with a significance of about $7\sigma$. These results provide the first robust observational confirmation of TTT and open a new window for cosmological measurements of neutrino mass and other cosmological parameters.