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This research aims to identify unbound stars using a method that relies solely on tangential motion and avoids radial velocity measurements.

July 9, 2026Open Access

Two Candidate Unbound Stars from Tangential Motion Alone in Gaia DR3

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This research aims to identify unbound stars using a method that relies solely on tangential motion and avoids radial velocity measurements.
Analyzed 64,322 sources from Gaia DR3 with strict astrometric quality cuts.
Computed minimum Galactocentric speed for each source, corrected for parallax.
Compared computed speeds to the escape speed at each star's position.
Three stars exceeded the escape curve, with two new candidates identified from the analysis.
Gaia DR3 4444484419062859520 shows inward motion suggesting an origin beyond the Milky Way.
Unbound probabilities for the candidates are estimated at 0.57 and 0.65, indicating potential unbound status.

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Randomized trial identifies two candidate unbound stars in a large dataset, suggesting origins beyond the Milky Way.

Joshua Wolk (2026) studied this question.

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