Constraining the internal dynamics of stellar systems using the NMAGIC particle code

Abstract

NMAGIC is a parallel implementation of our made-to-measure (2M2M) algorithm for constructing N-particle models of stellar systems from observational data, which extends earlier ideas by Syer & Tremaine (1996). The2M2M algorithm properly accounts for observational errors, is flexible, and can be applied to various systems and geometries. We show its ability to reproduce the internal dynamics of an oblate isotropic rotator model and report on the modeling of the dark matter (DM) halo of NGC 3379 combining SAURON and PN.S kinematic data. The2M2M algorithm is practical, reliable and can be applied to various dynamical systems without symmetry restrictions. We conclude that2M2M holds great promise for unraveling the internal dynamics of bulges.