2023/05/05 by Souradeep Bhattacharya, Bhattacharya, Souradeep
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA) #FOS: Physical sciences #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2305.03293
openalex publication_date 2023/05/05 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Andromeda (M 31) is the nearest giant spiral galaxy to our Milky Way, and over the past few decades, has been dubbed the most massive member of the Local Group. I explore the evolution of the measured mass of M 31 over the past ~80 years, reviewing the different observational and modelling techniques that have developed over time to measure its mass. I discuss the best present-day constraints of the mass of M 31 and the consistency of different techniques.