Issue |
A&A
Volume 690, October 2024
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | L4 | |
Number of page(s) | 8 | |
Section | Letters to the Editor | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202451662 | |
Published online | 07 October 2024 |
Letter to the Editor
Are all starbursts equal? Star-formation-rate profiles in merger versus secular starbursts
1
Argelander-Institut für Astronomie, Universität Bonn, Auf dem Hügel 71, 53121 Bonn, Germany
2
Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Victoria, Finnerty Road, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 1A1, Canada
Received:
25
July
2024
Accepted:
13
September
2024
Aims. Galaxy interactions can trigger drastic changes in the resolved star-forming properties of their constituents, but it remains unclear as to whether those changes are discernible from secular starburst triggers. In this Letter we investigate whether or not post-merger galaxies create unique star-forming trends on a kiloparsec scale.
Methods. We present radial trends in star-formation-rate (SFR) surface density (ΣSFR) for 150 post-merger galaxies with moderate to extremely heightened global SFRs using observations from the Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) survey. We juxtapose these profiles with those of noninteracting galaxies (excluding both galaxy pairs and post-merger galaxies) with similarly enhanced global SFRs.
Results. Post-merger galaxies have a much stronger central starburst than isolated galaxies with similar global star-formation enhancements. Indeed, isolated starburst galaxies (SBs) lack a marked central enhancement and instead show a fairly uniform enhancement in ΣSFR with radius. Moreover, the difference in central star formation between post-merger galaxies and noninteracting galaxies is more radially extended and pronounced when the global enhancement in star formation is larger. We conclude that post-merger galaxies create a unique signature in their resolved star-forming properties that is distinct from secular processes that can trigger similar global SFR enhancements.
Key words: galaxies: evolution / galaxies: interactions / galaxies: star formation
© The Authors 2024
Open Access article, published by EDP Sciences, under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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