Observing the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect Closer to Home

Abstract

Hot gas trapped in a dark matter halo will produce a decrement in the surface brightness of the microwave background, the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect. While massive clusters produce the strongest central SZ decrements, we point out that a local galaxy halo, specifically the halo of M31, may be one of the brightest integrated SZ sources in the sky. For various realistic gas distributions consistent with current X-ray limits, we show that the integrated SZ decrement from M31 will be comparable to decrements already detected in more distant sources, provided its halo contains an appreciable quantity of hot gas. A measurement of this decrement would provide direct information on the mass, spatial distribution and thermodynamic state of hot gas in a low-mass halo, and could place important constraints on current models of galaxy formation. Detecting such an extended (~ 10 degree), low-amplitude signal will be challenging, but should be possible with all-sky SZ maps from satellite missions such as the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe or the Planck Surveyor.

5 pages, 3 figures; submitted to MNRAS

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• Hot Extended Galaxy Halos Around Local L* Galaxies From Sunyaev-Zeldovich Measurements
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• Planck intermediate results. XL. The Sunyaev-Zeldovich signal from the Virgo cluster
• Can the splashback radius be an observable boundary of galaxy clusters?
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• Detection of Hot Gas in Galaxy Groups via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect
• SZ effects from annihilating dark matter in the Milky Way: smooth halo, subhalos and intermediate-mass-black-holes