Characterizing the satellites of massive galaxies up to z ∼ 2: young populations to build the outskirts of nearby massive galaxies
The accretion of minor satellites is currently proposed as the most likely mechanism to explain the significant size evolution of the massive galaxies during the last ∼10 Gyr. In this paper, we investigate the rest-frame colours and the average stellar ages of satellites found around massive galaxie...
| Autores: | , , , , |
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| Formato: | artículo |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2013 |
| País: | España |
| Recursos: | Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) |
| Repositorio: | Docta Complutense |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/35213 |
| Acesso em linha: | https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/35213 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palavra-chave: | 52 Star-forming galaxies Spectral energy-distributions Ultra-deep-field Size evolution Luminosity function Elliptic galaxies Redshift survey Metallicity gradients Spatial-distribution Spitzer/Irac sources Astrofísica Astronomía (Física) |
| Resumo: | The accretion of minor satellites is currently proposed as the most likely mechanism to explain the significant size evolution of the massive galaxies during the last ∼10 Gyr. In this paper, we investigate the rest-frame colours and the average stellar ages of satellites found around massive galaxies (M_star ∼ 10^11 M_⊙) since z ∼ 2. We find that the satellites have bluer colours than their central galaxies. When exploring the stellar ages of the galaxies, we find that the satellites have similar ages to the massive galaxies that host them at high redshifts, while at lower redshifts they are, on average, ≳1.5 Gyr younger. If our satellite galaxies create the envelope of nearby massive galaxies, our results would be compatible with the idea that the outskirts of those galaxies are slightly younger, metal-poorer and with lower [α/Fe] abundance ratios than their inner regions. |
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