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ABSTRACT We explore the evolution of cold streams from the cosmic web that feed galaxies through their shock-heated circumgalactic medium (CGM) at cosmic noon, $$z\simeq 1-5$$. In addition to the hydrodynamical instabilities and radiative cooling that we have incorporated in earlier works, we embed the stream and the hot CGM in the gravitational potential of the host dark matter halo, deriving equilibrium profiles for both. Self-gravity within the stream is tentatively ignored. We find that the cold streams gradually entrain a large mass of initially hot CGM gas that cools in the mixing layer and condenses onto the stream. This entrainment, combined with the acceleration down the gravitational potential well, typically triples the inward cold inflow rate into the central galaxy, compared to the original rate at the virial radius, which makes the entrained gas the dominant source of gas supply to the galaxy. The potential sources for the hot gas to be entrained are recycled enriched gas that has been previously ejected from the galaxy, and fresh virial-shock-heated gas that has accumulated in the CGM. This can naturally elevate the star formation rate in the galaxy by a factor of $$\sim 3$$ compared to the gas accretion rate onto the halo, thus explaining the otherwise puzzling observed excess of star formation at cosmic noon. When accounting for self-shielding of dense gas from the ultraviolet background, we find that the energy radiated from the streams, originating predominantly from the cooling of the entrained gas, is consistent with observed Lyman-$$\alpha$$ blobs around galaxies.
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Key Physical Processes in the Circumgalactic Medium
Spurred by rich, multiwavelength observations and enabled by new simulations, ranging from cosmological to subparsec scales, the past decade has seen major theoretical progress in our understanding of the circumgalactic medium (CGM). We review key physical processes in the CGM. Our conclusions include the following: ▪ The properties of the CGM depend on a competition between gravity-driven infall and gas cooling. When cooling is slow relative to free fall, the gas is hot (roughly virial temperature), whereas the gas is cold ( T ∼ 104K) when cooling is rapid. ▪ Gas inflows and outflows play crucial roles, as does the cosmological environment. Large-scale structure collimates cold streams and provides angular momentum. Satellite galaxies contribute to the CGM through winds and gas stripping. ▪ In multiphase gas, the hot and cold phases continuously exchange mass, energy, and momentum. The interaction between turbulent mixing and radiative cooling is critical. A broad spectrum of cold gas structures, going down to subparsec scales, arises from fragmentation, coagulation, and condensation onto gas clouds. ▪ Magnetic fields, thermal conduction, and cosmic rays can substantially modify how the cold and hot phases interact, although microphysical uncertainties are presently large. Key open questions for future work include the mutual interplay between small-scale structure and large-scale dynamics, and how the CGM affects the evolution of galaxies.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1652522
- PAR ID:
- 10475784
- Publisher / Repository:
- Annual Reviews
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Volume:
- 61
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 0066-4146
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 131 to 195
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-astro-052920-125203
