Stellar population constraints on the ages of galactic bars

James, P. A.; Percival, S. M.

doi:10.1093/mnras/stv2978

Cited by 58 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 46 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The formation and dynamics of bars is potentially an important mechanism for regulating the evolution of the star-formation rate in disk galaxies. While studies have highlighted a possible link between the star formation and the existence of bars in disk galaxies (see e.g., Laurikainen et al 2004a;Jogee et al 2005;Masters et al 2010;Ellison et al 2011), by studying the central regions of four strongly barred galaxies, James & Percival (2016) showed that the recent star formation appears to have been suppressed by the bars. By reconstructing the star-formation history of main-sequence galaxies from z = 3 to the present epoch, Gavazzi et al (2015) found that star-forming galaxies quenched above a mass threshold which increases with increasing redshift.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bar quenching in gas-rich galaxies

Khoperskov

Haywood

Matteo

et al. 2018

A&A

102

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Galaxy surveys have suggested that rapid and sustained decrease in the star-formation rate, "quenching", in massive disk galaxies is frequently related to the presence of a bar. Optical and near-IR observations reveal that nearly 60% of disk galaxies in the local universe are barred, thus it is important to understand the relationship between bars and star formation in disk galaxies. Recent observational results imply that the Milky Way quenched about 9-10 Gyr ago, at the transition between the cessation of the growth of the kinematically hot, old, metal-poor thick disk and the kinematically colder, younger, and more metal-rich thin disk. Although perhaps coincidental, the quenching episode could also be related to the formation of the bar. Indeed the transfer of energy from the large-scale shear induced by the bar to increasing turbulent energy could stabilize the gaseous disk against wide-spread star formation and quench the galaxy. To explore the relation between bar formation and star formation in gas rich galaxies quantitatively, we simulated gas-rich disk isolated galaxies. Our simulations include prescriptions for star formation, stellar feedback, and for regulating the multi-phase interstellar medium. We find that the action of stellar bar efficiently quenches star formation, reducing the star-formation rate by a factor of 10 in less than 1 Gyr. Analytical and self-consistent galaxy simulations with bars suggest that the action of the stellar bar increases the gas random motions within the co-rotation radius of the bar. Indeed, we detect an increase in the gas velocity dispersion up to 20 − 35 km s −1 at the end of the bar formation phase. The star-formation efficiency decreases rapidly, and in all of our models, the bar quenches the star formation in the galaxy. The star-formation efficiency is much lower in simulated barred compared to unbarred galaxies and more rapid bar formation implies more rapid quenching.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bar quenching in gas-rich galaxies

Khoperskov

Haywood

Matteo

et al. 2018

A&A

102

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…These regions also display a deficit in surface stellar density (Gadotti & de Souza 2003;Gadotti 2008;Kim et al 2016). James & Percival (2016, 2018 assumed a truncated star formation model and found that SFD regions can be very old. If the truncation of star formation is caused by the bar, this feature can be used to determine the epoch of bar formation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Redistribution of stars and gas in the star formation deserts of barred galaxies

Donohoe-Keyes

Martig

James

et al. 2019

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bars strongly influence the distribution of gas and stars within the central regions of their host galaxies. This is particularly pronounced in the star formation desert (SFD) which is defined as two symmetrical regions either side of the bar that show a deficit in young stars. Previous studies proposed that, if star formation is truncated because of the influence of the bar, then the age distribution of stars within the SFD could be used to determine the epoch of bar formation. To test this, we study the properties of SFDs in 6 galaxies from zoom-in cosmological re-simulations. Age maps reveal old regions on both sides of the bars, with a lack of stars younger than 10 Myr, confirming the SFD phenomenon. Local star formation is truncated in the SFDs because after the bar forms, gas in these regions is removed on 1 Gyr timescales. However, the overall age distribution of stars in the SFD does not show a sharp truncation after bar formation but rather a gradual downturn in comparison to that of the bar. This more subtle signature may still give information on bar formation epochs in observed galaxies, but the interpretation will be more difficult than originally hoped. The gradual drop in the SFD age distribution, instead of a truncation, is due to radial migration of stars born in the disk. The SFD is thus one of the only regions where an uncontaminated sample of stars only affected by radial migration can be studied.

show abstract

“…Urquhart et al 2018) and therefore star formation is likely to be intermittent in time as well. Moreover, the effect of the Galactic bar on star formation within 3-4 kpc of the Galactic Centre is poorly understood, but the presence of a bar may suppress star formation (James & Percival 2016) and (as simulations have shown) disrupt the dynamics throughout the disc (e.g. Dobbs & Pringle 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of spiral arms in Milky Way star formation

Ragan

Moore

Eden

et al. 2018

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

What role does Galactic structure play in star formation? We have used the Herschel Hi-GAL compact-clump catalogue to examine trends in evolutionary stage over large spatial scales in the inner Galaxy. We examine the relationship between the fraction of clumps with embedded star formation (the star-forming fraction, or SFF) and other measures of star-formation activity. Based on a positive correlation between SFF and evolutionary indicators such as the luminosity-to-mass ratio, we assert that the SFF principally traces the average evolutionary state of a sample and must depend on the local fraction of rapidly-evolving, high-mass young stellar objects. The spiralarm tangent point longitudes show small excesses in the SFF, though these can be accounted for by a small number of the most massive clusters, just 7.6% of the total number of clumps in the catalogue. This suggests that while the arms tend to be home to the Galaxy's massive clusters, the remaining 92.4% of Hi-GAL clumps in our catalogue do not show an enhancement of star formation within arms. Globally, the SFF is highest at the Galactic midplane and inner longitudes. We find no significant trend in evolutionary stage as a function of position across spiral arms at the tangentpoint longitudes. This indicates that the angular offset observed between gas and stars, if coordinated by a density wave, is not evident at the clump phase; alternatively, the onset of star formation is not triggered by the spiral density wave.

show abstract

Stellar population constraints on the ages of galactic bars

Cited by 58 publications

References 46 publications

Bar quenching in gas-rich galaxies

Bar quenching in gas-rich galaxies

Redistribution of stars and gas in the star formation deserts of barred galaxies

The role of spiral arms in Milky Way star formation

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About