The formation of massive stellar clusters in converging galactic flows with photoionisation
Dobbs, CL; Bending, TJR; Pettitt, AR; et al.Bate, MR
Date: 23 October 2021
Journal
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP) / Royal Astronomical Society
Publisher DOI
Abstract
We have performed simulations of cluster formation along two regions of a spiral arm taken from a global Milky
Way simulation, including photoionising feedback. One region is characterised by strongly converging flows, the other
represents a more typical spiral arm region. We find that more massive clusters are able to form on shorter ...
We have performed simulations of cluster formation along two regions of a spiral arm taken from a global Milky
Way simulation, including photoionising feedback. One region is characterised by strongly converging flows, the other
represents a more typical spiral arm region. We find that more massive clusters are able to form on shorter timescales
for the region with strongly converging flows. Mergers between clusters are frequent in the case of the strongly
converging flows and enable the formation of massive clusters. We compare equivalent clusters formed in simulations
with and without ionisation. Photoionisation does not prevent massive cluster formation, but can be seen to limit
the masses of the clusters. On average the mass is reduced by around 20%, but we see a large spread from ionisation
having minimal difference to leading to a 50% reduction in mass. Photoionisation is also able to clear out the gas in
the vicinity of the clusters on Myr timescales, which can produce clusters with larger radii that are surrounded by
more massive stellar halos. We find that the ionising feedback has more impact in our second region which is less
dense and has less strongly converging flows.
Physics and Astronomy
Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy
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