The unprecedented sky coverage and photometric uniformity of the Two Micron
All Sky Survey (2MASS) provides a rich resource for investigating the galaxies
populating the local Universe. A full characterization of the large-scale
clustering distribution is important for theoretical studies of structure
formation. 2MASS offers an all-sky view of the local galaxy population at 2.15
micron, unbiased by young stellar light and minimally affected by dust. We use
2MASS to map the local distribution of galaxies, identifying the largest
structures in the nearby universe. The inhomogeneity of these structures causes
an acceleration on the Local Group of galaxies, which can be seen in the dipole
of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). We find that the direction of the
2MASS clustering dipole is 11 degrees from the CMB dipole, confirming that the
local galaxy distribution accelerates the Local Group. From the magnitude of
the dipole we find a value of the linear bias parameter b=1.37 +/- 0.3 in the
K_s-band. The 2MASS clustering dipole is 19 degrees from the latest measurement
of the dipole using galaxies detected by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite
(IRAS) suggesting that bias may be non-linear in some wavebands.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, submitted to ApJ Letters, a version of the paper
with full resolution figures can be found here
http://daisy.astro.umass.edu/~ari
