Dark matter distribution in Milky Way-analog galaxies

Our current understanding of how dark matter (DM) is distributed within the Milky Way halo, particularly in the solar neighborhood, is based on either careful studies of the local stellar orbits, model assumptions on the global shape of the MW halo, or from direct acceleration measurements. In this work, we undertake a study of external galaxies, with the intent of providing insight to the DM distribution in MW-analog galaxies. For this, we carefully select a sample of galaxies similar to the MW, based on maximum atomic hydrogen (HI) rotational velocity (\(v_{\rm max,HI}\)= 200-280 km s\(^{-1}\)) and morphological type (Sab-Sbc) criteria. With a need for deep, highly-resolved HI, our resulting sample is composed of 5 galaxies from the VIVA and THINGS surveys. To perform our baryonic analysis, we use deep Spitzer mid-IR images at 3.6 and 4.5 \(\mu\)m from the S\(^4\)G survey. Based on the dynamical three-dimensional modeling software \(^{3D}\)Barolo, we construct rotation curves (RCs) and derive the gas and stellar contributions from the galaxy's gaseous- and stellar-disks mass surface density profiles. Through a careful decomposition of their RCs into their baryonic (stars, gas) and DM components, we isolate the DM contribution by using an MCMC-based approach. Based on the Sun's location and the MW's R\(_{25}\), we define the corresponding location of the solar neighborhood in these systems. We put forward a window for the DM density (\(\rho_{dm}\) = 0.21-0.55 GeV cm\(^{-3}\)) at these galactocentric distances in our MW analog sample, consistent with the values found for the MW's local DM density, based on more traditional approaches found in the literature.