Effects of environment on sSFR profiles of late-type galaxies in the CALIFA survey

¹ Instituto de Astronomía Teórica y Experimental (IATE), CONICET - UNC, Laprida 854, X5000BGR Córdoba, Argentina
² Observatorio Astronómico, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Laprida 854, X5000BGR Córdoba, Argentina
e-mail: vcoenda@mail.oac.uncor.edu
³ Consejo de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de la República Argentina, Avda., Rivadavia 1917, C1033AAJ CABA, Argentina

Received: 3 August 2018
Accepted: 14 November 2018

Abstract

Aims. We explore the effects of environment on star formation in late-type galaxies by studying the dependence of the radial profiles of specific star formation rate (sSFR) on environment and the stellar mass, using a sample of 275 late-type galaxies drawn from the CALIFA survey.

Methods. We consider three different discrete environments: field galaxies, galaxies in pairs, and galaxies in groups, with stellar masses 9 ≤ log(M_⋆/M_⊙) ≤ 12, and compare their sSFR profiles across the environments.

Results. Our results suggest that the stellar mass is the main factor determining the sSFR profiles of late-type galaxies; the influence of AGNs and bars are secondary. We find that the relative size of the bulge plays a key role in depressing star formation towards the center of late-type galaxies. The group environment determines clear differences in the sSFR profiles of galaxies. We find evidence of an outside-in action upon galaxies with stellar masses 9 ≤ log(M_⋆/M_⊙) ≤ 10 in groups. We find a much stronger suppression of star formation in the inner regions of massive galaxies in groups, which may be an indication of a different merger history.