The mystery of superfast star formation is solved

The mystery of superfast star formation is solved

Scientists have long been interested in how, in extremely bright and ancient galaxies, known as submillimeter (SMG), star formation was possible, which took place 1000 times faster than in the Milky Way. Two theories dominated the debate. According to the first of them, the collisions of galaxies led to short-term, but powerful outbursts of star formation. The second is that SMGs are long-lived structures that build up mass over time.

"None of the scenarios fully reflects the observed properties of the SMG," astronomer Romeel Dave of the University of the Western Cape (Cape Town, South Africa) writes in his article published in the latest issue of the journal Nature. A new study, also published in Nature, contains computer modeling data that show that these galaxies are durable and can generate stars at an incredible speed — from 500 to 1000 stars with the Sun’s mass per year for a billion years. What makes them so productive? Modeling shows that galaxies that date back 3 billion years after the Big Bang contain gas reserves to form new stars without needing to merge with other galaxies.

"In a nutshell, the authors believe that the SMG most likely arose from the" ideal storm "by gas accretion during the processing of previously ejected material and due to the submillimeter glow of nearby galaxies," writes Dave.

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