Reconstructing the gravitational field of the local universe
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Blackwell Publishing Inc.
Authors:
H Desmond, PG Ferreira, G Lavaux, J Jasche
Abstract:
Tests of gravity at the galaxy scale are in their infancy. As a first step to
systematically uncovering the gravitational significance of galaxies, we map
three fundamental gravitational variables -- the Newtonian potential,
acceleration and curvature -- over the galaxy environments of the local
universe to a distance of approximately 200 Mpc. Our method combines the
contributions from galaxies in an all-sky redshift survey, halos from an N-body
simulation hosting low-luminosity objects, and linear and quasi-linear modes of
the density field. We use the ranges of these variables to determine the extent
to which galaxies expand the scope of generic tests of gravity and are capable
of constraining specific classes of model for which they have special
significance. Finally, we investigate the improvements afforded by upcoming
galaxy surveys.
