Cool and gusty, with a chance of rain: Dynamics of multiphase CGM around massive galaxies in the Romulus simulations
Authors: Vida Saeedzadeh, S. Lyla Jung, Douglas Rennehan, Arif Babul, Michael Tremmel, Thomas R. Quinn, Zhiwei Shao, Prateek Sharma, Lucio Mayer, E. OSullivan, S. Ilani Loubser
AI-generated Key Points
- The paper investigates the origin and evolution of the circumgalactic medium (CGM) around massive central galaxies in group-scale halos.
- The CGM is found to be multiphase and highly dynamic, with seven distinct patterns of evolution identified across various conditions.
- Two pathways by which gas cools are identified: filamentary cooling inflows and condensations forming from rapidly cooling density perturbations.
- Condensations can form even when the median $t_\mathrm{cool} / t_\mathrm{ff}$ of X-ray emitting gas is above the canonical threshold of 10 or 20.
- Strong amplitude perturbations can provoke runaway cooling regardless of the state of the background gas, while weak perturbations may not condense despite local $t_\mathrm{cool} / t_\mathrm{ff}$ ratios dropping below the threshold.
- Using a simple threshold argument to infer CGM evolution for structures forming hierarchically is challenging, and median hot gas properties are suboptimal determinants of the CGM's state and dynamics.
- Realistic CGM models must factor in the effects and after-effects of mergers and orbiting satellites, along with its heating and cooling cycles.
Abstract: Using high-resolution Romulus simulations, we explore the origin and evolution of the circumgalactic medium (CGM) in the zone 0.1 $\leq \mathrm{R}/\mathrm{R}_\mathrm{500} \leq$ 1 around massive central galaxies in group-scale halos. We find that the CGM is both multiphase and highly dynamic. Investigating the dynamics, we identify seven patterns of evolution. We show that these are robust and detected consistently across various conditions. There are two pathways by which the gas cools: (1) filamentary cooling inflows and (2) condensations forming from rapidly cooling density perturbations. In our cosmological simulations, the perturbations are mainly seeded by orbiting substructures. We find that condensations can form even when the median $t_\mathrm{cool} / t_\mathrm{ff}$ of the X-ray emitting gas is above the canonical threshold of 10 or 20. Strong amplitude perturbations can provoke runaway cooling regardless of the state of the background gas. We also find perturbations whose local $t_\mathrm{cool} / t_\mathrm{ff}$ ratios drop below the threshold but which do not condense. Rather, the ratios fall to some minimum value and then bounce. These are weak perturbations that are temporarily swept up in satellite wakes and carried to larger radii. Their $t_\mathrm{cool} / t_\mathrm{ff}$ ratios decrease because the denominator ($t_\mathrm{ff}$) is increasing, not because the numerator ($t_\mathrm{cool}$) is decreasing. For structures forming hierarchically, our study highlights the challenge of using a simple threshold argument to infer the CGM's evolution. It also highlights that the median hot gas properties are suboptimal determinants of the CGM's state and dynamics. Realistic CGM models must factor in the effects and after-effects of mergers and orbiting satellites, along with the CGM's heating and cooling cycles.
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