arXivDaily arXiv每日学术速递 周一至周五更新
arXiv 2001.03626astro-ph.GA
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核星团

Nuclear Star Clusters

Nadine Neumayer, Anil Seth, Torsten Boeker

摘要:

我们回顾了目前有关核星团(NSC)的知识,在大多数星系的中心发现的异常密集和巨大的恒星集合体。最近的观测和理论工作表明,许多NSC的性质,包括它们的质量,密度和恒星星族随其宿主星系的性质而变化。因此,了解NSC的形成、生长和最终命运对于完整了解星系演化至关重要。在整个审查中,我们试图结合和提炼现有的证据,形成一个连贯的画面NSC的演变。综合起来,这些证据表明,在大约10^9太阳质量的星系中,有一个明显的过渡质量,那里的核星团的特征发生了变化。我们认为,在较低的质量,NSC主要是从球状星团,螺旋到星系的中心,而在较高的质量,恒星形成的核内形成的NSC的大部分。我们还讨论了NSC和中央黑洞的共存,以及它们的增长可能是如何联系在一起的。NSC的极端密度及其与大质量黑洞的相互作用导致了广泛的独特现象,包括潮汐破裂和引力波事件。最后,我们审查的证据表明,许多NSC最终在大规模星系的光环剥夺了周围的恒星,从而提供了宝贵的示踪剂的星系的吸积历史。

英文摘要:

We review the current knowledge about nuclear star clusters (NSCs), the spectacularly dense and massive assemblies of stars found at the centers of most galaxies. Recent observational and theoretical work suggest that many NSC properties, including their masses, densities, and stellar populations vary with the properties of their host galaxies. Understanding the formation, growth, and ultimate fate of NSCs therefore is crucial for a complete picture of galaxy evolution. Throughout the review, we attempt to combine and distill the available evidence into a coherent picture of NSC evolution. Combined, this evidence points to a clear transition mass in galaxies of ~10^9 solar masses where the characteristics of nuclear star clusters change. We argue that at lower masses, NSCs are formed primarily from globular clusters that inspiral into the center of the galaxy, while at higher masses, star formation within the nucleus forms the bulk of the NSC. We also discuss the coexistence of NSCs and central black holes, and how their growth may be linked. The extreme densities of NSCs and their interaction with massive black holes lead to a wide range of unique phenomena including tidal disruption and gravitational wave events. Lastly, we review the evidence that many NSCs end up in the halos of massive galaxies stripped of the stars that surrounded them, thus providing valuable tracers of the galaxies' accretion histories.

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