Abstract
High resolution X-ray spectra reveal hidden cooling flows depositing cold gas at the centres of massive nearby early-type galaxies with little sign of normal star formation. Optical observations are revealing that a bottom-heavy initial mass function is common within the inner kpc of similar galaxies. We revive the possibility that a low-mass star formation mode is operating due to the high thermal pressure in the cooling flow, thus explaining the accumulation of low-mass stars. We further explore whether such a mode operated in early high-redshift galaxies and has sporadically continued to the present day. The idea links observed distant galaxies with black holes which are ultramassive for their stellar mass, nearby red nuggets and massive early-type galaxies. Nearby elliptical galaxies may be red but they are not dead.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 267-270 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |
| Volume | 531 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jun 1 2024 |
Bibliographical note
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Keywords
- galaxies: clusters: intracluster medium
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science