The Pristine survey XXXI. A stream offset from the Stream: very metal-poor stellar debris trailing 100^∘ from the LMC-SMC system

@misc{viswanathan2026pristine,
  title = {{The Pristine survey XXXI. A stream offset from the Stream: very metal-poor stellar debris trailing 100$^\circ$ from the LMC-SMC system}},
  author = {Akshara Viswanathan and Kim A. Venn and Julio F. Navarro and Daniel A. Boyea and Federico Sestito and Camila Navarrete and Hanneke C. Woudenberg and Tadafumi Matsuno and Vinicius M. Placco and Madeleine McKenzie and Triana Cornejo and Anya Dovgal and Anke Ardern-Arentsen and Manuel Bayer and Amanda Byström and Vanessa Hill and Pascale Jablonka and Jaclyn Jensen and Georges Kordopatis and Nicolas F. Martin and Rubén Sánchez-Janssen and Simon E. T. Smith and Else Starkenburg and Daria Zaremba and Giuseppina Battaglia and Salvatore Taibi},
  howpublished = {arXiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = nov,
  doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2611.07563},
  eprint = {2611.07563},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.07563},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}

TY  - UNPB
TI  - The Pristine survey XXXI. A stream offset from the Stream: very metal-poor stellar debris trailing 100^∘ from the LMC-SMC system
AU  - Akshara Viswanathan
AU  - Kim A. Venn
AU  - Julio F. Navarro
AU  - Daniel A. Boyea
AU  - Federico Sestito
AU  - Camila Navarrete
AU  - Hanneke C. Woudenberg
AU  - Tadafumi Matsuno
AU  - Vinicius M. Placco
AU  - Madeleine McKenzie
AU  - Triana Cornejo
AU  - Anya Dovgal
AU  - Anke Ardern-Arentsen
AU  - Manuel Bayer
AU  - Amanda Byström
AU  - Vanessa Hill
AU  - Pascale Jablonka
AU  - Jaclyn Jensen
AU  - Georges Kordopatis
AU  - Nicolas F. Martin
AU  - Rubén Sánchez-Janssen
AU  - Simon E. T. Smith
AU  - Else Starkenburg
AU  - Daria Zaremba
AU  - Giuseppina Battaglia
AU  - Salvatore Taibi
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/11/05
PB  - arXiv
DO  - 10.48550/arxiv.2611.07563
UR  - https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.07563
AB  - Context: The stellar counterpart to the 200^∘-long HI Stream from the Clouds probes their tidally stripped stellar populations and constrains their interaction history and structure before infall into the Milky Way. Aims: We investigate the chemodynamics and possible origin of very metal-poor (VMP; [Fe/H] <−2) stars in the stellar Stream, targeting distant red giants selected from the Pristine--Gaia synthetic metallicity catalogue. Methods: We obtained high-resolution Gemini/GHOST spectroscopy of 33 candidate members, deriving radial velocities and metallicities. We combine these data with literature red giant members and assess their association with the Clouds using orbital integrations in a time-dependent Milky Way--LMC potential. We also compare their distribution with collisionless test particles initially placed in a diffuse LMC stellar halo. Results: We identify 12 high-confidence members based on energy and angular momentum: one intermediate metal-poor star ([Fe/H] ∼−1.6), ten VMP stars, and one extremely metal-poor (EMP) star ([Fe/H] <−3). The new VMP stars trace over 100^∘ of the trailing Stream, follow the Clouds' kinematics, and lie ∼20^∘ from both the HI Stream and previously known, more metal-rich debris, suggesting a metallicity-dependent spatial distribution. Combined with the literature, they approximately double the known red giant sample and extend its metallicity range from [Fe/H] ∼−0.5 to −4.3. Orbital integrations support an association with the Clouds, while test particles reproduce the debris' broad spatial distribution. Conclusions: VMP and EMP stars contribute to the Clouds' tidal debris. They may originate in the extended stellar halos of the LMC or SMC, or in disrupted satellites. Their spatial and kinematic properties can constrain future simulations of the Milky Way--LMC--SMC interaction.
ER  -