Puzzles in Galaxy Scaling Relations and Dark Matter Distributions

Galaxies like the Milky Way can be characterized by their structure, dynamics, and stellar populations. Strikingly, key structural properties like stellar mass, circular velocity, and size, follow tight correlations with remarkably small scatter across many orders of magnitude. This precision points to well-regulated processes shaping galaxy formation. Yet, a central challenge remains: unraveling the complex interplay between visible and dark matter across all radii. This work offers a modern perspective on fundamental galaxy scaling relations, confronting them with state-of-the-art numerical simulations to probe the physics of galaxy formation in a LCDM universe.