Axial Symmetry Tests of Milky Way Disk Stars Probe the Galaxy’s Matter Distribution (Austin Hinkel, University of Kentucky Dissertation)
Description
A repository for the data and code used in my thesis at the University of Kentucky (2021). The data file itself is a subset of Gaia data (data release 2, or "DR2"), obtained from the Gaia Space Telescope, which can be queried via the freely available Gaia archive. The code is written in C++, Python, C, and root. Documentation can be found in "README" files, within the code itself, and in this repository's text.
Files
Steps to reproduce
Beginning with the Gaia archive's second data release, make the following cuts on the data (NB: it may be computationally easier to query data within 3.3 kpc of the Sun, while cutting only on indexed columns, and apply the more complicated, geometric cuts via a C++/root script): abs(latitude) > 30 degrees 14 < G band magnitude < 18 0.5 < BP minus RP color < 2.5 parallax > -0.07 mas 7 < Galactocentric Radius (R) < 9 kpc 174 < Galactocentric Azimuth (phi) < 186 degrees 0.2 < z (solarcentric height above the "midplane" or sun's location) < 3.0 kpc (NB: this is Galactocentric z if the z_sun offset is assumed to be zero.) LMC/SMC cuts (see thesis document or https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab8235) (NB: the variable names are different in the Gaia database, please see the documentation for the correct syntax. The thesis document itself includes an example query. It is highly recommended to perform the query in pieces, say for wedges of solarcentric longitude, to avoid query timeout. Longer query times are afforded to users with an account on the Gaia archive website.) (NB: By cutting explicitly on BP minus RP color and parallax, this query ensures the result is free of null values. All stars have a non-null value for the G band magnitude and the latitude.)