A kinematically distinct core and minor-axis rotation: the MUSE perspective on M87

Abstract

We present evidence for the presence of a low-amplitude kinematically distinct component in the giant early-type galaxy M87, via datasets obtained with the SAURON and MUSE integral-field spectroscopic units. The MUSE velocity field reveals a strong twist of ~140 deg within the central 30 arcsec connecting outwards such a kinematically distinct core to a prolate-like rotation around the large-scale photometric major-axis of the galaxy. The existence of these kinematic features within the apparently round central regions of M87 implies a non-axisymmetric and complex shape for this galaxy, which could be further constrained using the presented kinematics. The associated orbital structure should be interpreted together with other tracers of the gravitational potential probed at larger scales (e.g., Globular Clusters, Ultra Compact Dwarfs, Planetary Nebulae): it would offer an insight in the assembly history of one of the brightest galaxies in the Virgo Cluster. These data also demonstrate the potential of the MUSE spectrograph to uncover low-amplitude spectral signatures.

arXiv commentAccepted for publication in MNRAS Letters, 5 pages, 4 figures

References in corpus (43)

• The hierarchical formation of the brightest cluster galaxies
• MILES: A Medium resolution INT Library of Empirical Spectra
• Adaptive spatial binning of integral-field spectroscopic data using Voronoi tessellations
• The Atlas3D project -- I. A volume-limited sample of 260 nearby early-type galaxies: science goals and selection criteria
• The Two Phases of Galaxy Formation
• An updated MILES stellar library and stellar population models
• The ATLAS3D project - III. A census of the stellar angular momentum within the effective radius of early-type galaxies: unveiling the distribution of Fast and Slow Rotators
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. XIII. SBF Distance Catalog and the Three-Dimensional Structure of the Virgo Cluster
• The SAURON project. I. The panoramic integral-field spectrograph
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. VI. Isophotal Analysis and the Structure of Early-Type Galaxies
• The SAURON project. II. Sample and early results
• Kinemetry: a generalisation of photometry to the higher moments of the line-of-sight velocity distribution
• The SAURON project - III. Integral-field absorption-line kinematics of 48 elliptical and lenticular galaxies
• The ATLAS3D project - II. Morphologies, kinemetric features and alignment between photometric and kinematic axes of early-type galaxies
• The Black-Hole Mass in M87 from Gemini/NIFS Adaptive Optics Observations
• The supermassive black hole of M87 and the kinematics of its associated gaseous disk
• Diffuse Light in the Virgo Cluster
• The ACS Virgo Cluster Survey XV. The Formation Efficiencies of Globular Clusters in Early-Type Galaxies: The Effects of Mass and Environment
• The M87 Black Hole Mass from Gas-dynamical Models of Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph Observations
• Triaxial orbit based galaxy models with an application to the (apparent) decoupled core galaxy NGC 4365
• The Black Hole Mass, Stellar M/L, and Dark Halo in M87
• Dynamics of the Globular Cluster System Associated with M87 (NGC 4486). II. Analysis
• The Atlas3D Project - VI. Simulations of binary galaxy mergers and the link with Fast Rotators, Slow Rotators, and Kinematically Distinct Cores
• Wide-Field Precision Kinematics of the M87 Globular Cluster System
• Measuring the non-thermal pressure in early type galaxy atmospheres: A comparison of X-ray and optical potential profiles in M87 and NGC1399
• 2-Dimensional Kinematics of Simulated Disc Merger Remnants
• Galaxy mapping with the SAURON integral-field spectrograph: The star formation history of NGC 4365
• Orbital structure of merger remnants: Trends with gas fraction in 1:1 mergers
• The SLUGGS Survey: Wide-field Stellar Kinematics of Early-type Galaxies
• The ongoing assembly of a central cluster galaxy: Phase-space substructures in the halo of M87
• Galaxy Kinematics with VIRUS-P: The Dark Matter Halo of M87
• Recovering the intrinsic shape of early-type galaxies
• Orbital Structure of Collisionless Merger Remnants: On the Origin of Photometric and Kinematic Properties of Elliptical and S0 Galaxies
• Dry Mergers: A Crucial Test for Galaxy Formation
• The planetary nebula population in the halo of M87
• Elliptical galaxy masses out to five effective radii: the realm of dark matter
• Growth of brightest cluster galaxies via mergers since z = 1
• The Next Generation Virgo cluster Survey. V. modelling the dynamics of M87 with the Made-to-Measure method
• The Spin of M87 as measured from the Rotation of its Globular Clusters
• The edge of the M87 halo and the kinematics of the diffuse light in the Virgo cluster core
• Diffuse Stellar Light at 100 kpc Scales in M87
• Long-Lived Triaxiality in the Dynamically Old Elliptical Galaxy NGC 4365: A Limit on Chaos and Black Hole Mass
• The Rising Stellar Velocity Dispersion of M87 from Integrated Starlight

Cited by in corpus (39)

• Structure and Kinematics of Early-Type Galaxies from Integral-Field Spectroscopy
• Stellar kinematics across the Hubble sequence in the CALIFA survey: General properties and aperture corrections
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey. VI. The Kinematics of Ultra-compact Dwarfs and Globular Clusters in M87
• MUSE observations of M87: radial gradients for the stellar initial-mass function and the abundance of Sodium
• The Fornax3D project: overall goals, galaxy sample, MUSE data analysis and initial results
• Galaxy Rotation and Rapid Supermassive Black Hole Binary Coalescence
• Galaxy structure from multiple tracers: II. M87 from parsec to megaparsec scales
• The SLUGGS Survey: stellar kinematics, kinemetry and trends at large radii in 25 early-type galaxies
• The origin and properties of massive prolate galaxies in the Illustris simulation
• Galaxy structure from multiple tracers: III. Radial variations in M87's IMF
• Climbing to the top of the galactic mass ladder: evidence for frequent prolate-like rotation among the most massive galaxies
• The kinematics of the outer halo of M87 as mapped by planetary nebulae
• Keck Integral-Field Spectroscopy of M87 Reveals an Intrinsically Triaxial Galaxy and a Revised Black Hole Mass
• CALIFA reveals Prolate Rotation in Massive Early-type Galaxies: A Polar Galaxy Merger Origin?
• The Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS) XXXI. The kinematics of intra-cluster globular clusters in the core of the Virgo cluster
• Kinematics of Simulated Galaxies II: Probing the Stellar Kinematics of Galaxies out to Large Radii
• Mysterious Coherence in Several-Megaparsec Scales Between Galaxy Rotation and Neighbor Motion
• A Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE).V. Properties of the ionised gas filament of M87
• History and destiny of an emerging early-type galaxy: New IFU insights on the major-merger remnant NGC7252
• The impact of AGN on stellar kinematics and orbits in simulated massive galaxies
• Supermassive black hole mass in the massive elliptical galaxy M87 from integral-field stellar dynamics using OASIS and MUSE with adaptive optics: assessing systematic uncertainties
• A close look at the dwarf AGN of NGC 4395: optical and near-IR integral field spectroscopy
• Prospects for Recovering Galaxy Intrinsic Shapes from Projected Quantities
• Galaxy Rotation Coherent with the Motions of Neighbors: Discovery of Observational Evidence
• What does (not) drive the variation of the low-mass end of the stellar initial mass function of early-type galaxies
• A discrete chemo-dynamical model of M87's globular clusters: Kinematics extending to ~ 400 kpc
• Mapping the Kinematically Decoupled Core in NGC 1407 with MUSE
• Revisiting the black hole mass of M87* using VLT/MUSE Adaptive Optics Integral Field Unit data I: Ionized gas kinematics
• Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI) Spectra of Globular Clusters and Ultra Compact Dwarfs in the Halo of M87
• Ubiquitous signs of interactions in early-type galaxies with prolate rotation
• Orbit properties of massive prolate galaxies in the Illustris simulation
• Pixel Color-Magnitude Diagram Analysis of the Brightest Cluster Galaxies in Dynamically Young and Old Clusters, Abell 1139 and Abell 2589
• The Stellar Kinematics of Extragalactic Bulges
• Puzzling radial gradients of K-band absorption features in the giant elliptical galaxy M87
• NGC 5626: a massive fast rotator with a twist
• The BlueMUSE data reduction pipeline: lessons learned from MUSE and first design choices
• Dynamics of Companion Galaxies of Early-Type Galaxies
• Multi-spin stellar velocity maps of the most massive galaxies
• Observations of AGN-driven feedback: dynamics and ionization of the filaments in M87