12:00–1:00 pm ERC 401
Host: Anastasia Sokolenko
Nicolas Garavito-Camargo (Center for Computational Astrophysics) "On the dynamical disequilibrium state of the Milky Way and the nature of the Dark Matter halo"
In the Gaia era compelling observational evidence has demonstrated that the Milky Way galaxy is not in a state of dynamical equilibrium. The primary source of this disequilibrium is the gravitational interaction with massive satellites, particularly the Sagittarius dwarf and the Large Mag. Clouds (LMC). This situation provides an opportunity to investigate how Dark Matter (DM) halos respond to external perturbations from satellites. In this seminar, I will discuss how DM halos react to satellite accretion and highlight some of the observational features of these interactions. Moreover, I will discuss how this state of disequilibrium can serve as a potential probe for the nature of Dark Matter. Finally, I will present novel techniques utilizing Basis Function Expansions that enable us to better comprehend and simulate this state of dynamical disequilibrium. These methods will maximize our interpretation of present and forthcoming observational surveys.
About speaker: Nicolas (Nico) Garavito-Camargo specializes in studying the dynamics of the Milky Way and its satellite galaxies to understand how dark matter is distributed throughout the galaxy. He uses both idealized and cosmological simulations, along with novel methods, to understand how dark matter behaves in dynamical disequilibrium. Nico is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Flatiron Institute. Prior to that, he was a graduate student at the University of Arizona where he earned his PhD degree in 2021.
