Cooling shells and galaxy formation in the early universe

Abstract

view Abstract Citations (26) References (18) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Cooling shells and galaxy formation in the early universe Wandel, A. Abstract The expansion cooling and instability of explosions in the intergalactic medium of the early universe are investigated theoretically in the explosive-amplification model of Ostriker and Cowie (1981), taking radiative-transfer, Compton, radiative, and molecular processes into account. The importance of radiative cooling in the inverse-Compton era and the impossibility of explosions cooling to the temperature of the background radiation are demonstrated. A model is proposed in which molecular (H2) cooling produces equilibrium temperatures of about (3170/sq rt z) K, amplification and gravitational instability occur for explosions of seed masses above 10 to the 9th solar mass, and rapid cooling of supernovae precludes galactic-scale explosions at redshifts in excess of 60, but in which shells of (1-10) x 10 to the 13th solar mass can be produced at redshifts of 10 or less and fragment to galactic-scale masses. Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Pub Date: July 1985 DOI: 10.1086/163306 Bibcode: 1985ApJ...294..385W Keywords: Astronomical Models; Background Radiation; Cosmology; Galactic Evolution; Intergalactic Media; Radiant Cooling; Compton Effect; Explosions; Gravitational Collapse; Molecular Clouds; Red Shift; Shock Heating; Supernovae; Astrophysics full text sources ADS |