Issue |
A&A
Volume 501, Number 1, July I 2009
|
|
---|---|---|
Page(s) | 15 - 20 | |
Section | Cosmology (including clusters of galaxies) | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/200911650 | |
Published online | 29 April 2009 |
The fraction of quiescent massive galaxies in the early Universe
1
INAF – Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, via Frascati 33, 00040 Monteporzio (RM), Italy e-mail: fontana@oa-roma.inaf.it
2
Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Roma “La Sapienza”, P.le A. Moro 2, 00185 Roma, Italy
3
Department of Astronomy, University of Massachusetts, 710 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
4
INAF – Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste, via G.B. Tiepolo 11, 34131 Trieste, Italy
Received:
12
January
2009
Accepted:
21
January
2009
Aims. We attempt to compile a complete, mass-selected sample of galaxies with low specific star-formation rates, and compare their properties with theoretical model predictions.
Methods.
We use the flux ratio and the SED fitting to the
m spectral distribution, to select quiescent
galaxies from
to
in the GOODS-MUSIC
sample. Our observational selection can be translated into
thresholds in specific star-formation rate
, which
can be compared with theoretical predictions.
Results.
In the framework of the well-known global decline in
quiescent galaxy fraction with redshift, we find that a non-negligible
fraction of massive galaxies with low
specific star-formation rate exists up to
, including
a tail of “red and dead” galaxies with
yr-1. Theoretical models vary
to a large extent in their predictions for the fraction of galaxies
with low specific star-formation rates, but are unable to
provide a global match to our data.
Key words: galaxies: formation / galaxies: evolution / galaxies: high-redshift
© ESO, 2009
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