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Abstract Background

Research

My research combines observations of nearby dwarf galaxies with orbital modeling to probe the nature of dark matter and shed light on galaxy evolution, particularly in the low-mass regime. I also use high-resolution N-body and cosmological simulations to provide theoretical context for galaxy dynamics in the Local Group and to place our galactic neighborhood within a broader cosmological setting. See my Publications for examples of my recent work.

Miller_Newsletter_orbits_Patel_edited_ed

The orbits of Milky Way satellite galaxies over the last 3 billion years. Circular symbols indicate where satellites are located today, while curves represent the backwards trajectories of satellite galaxies. The dark matter halo of the Milky Way is approximated by the gray sphere. Orbits of the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are indicated with solid and dashed black lines, respectively.  The group of ultra-faint satellite galaxies identified to be companions of the Magellanic Clouds in Patel+20 (Carina 2, Carina 3, Horologium 1, Hydrus 1, Phoenix 2, and Reticulum 2) are in blue. These satellites clearly evidence a shared orbital history with the Clouds over the last 3 billion years and have entered the dark matter halo of the Milky Way as a group, providing the first confirmation of a group accretion scenario.

Are you an undergraduate interested in joining the Patel Research Group at Villanova? Email me at ekta.patel@villanova.edu! I currently have projects available for students with and without previous coding and research experience.

Previous Advisees

Josh Boyd Hill

Postbac - University of Utah (B.S. 2023)

now PhD student at University of Utah

Tadg Noland

Undergraduate - University of Utah (B.S. 2025)

Lipika Chatur

Undergraduate - University of Texas, Austin (B.S. 2025)

​now PhD student at University of Utah

Dr. Katie Chamberlain

Graduate Student - University of Arizona (PhD, 2024)

​now Staff Scientist in Data Analytics at Areté

© 2025 Ekta Patel

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