ON THE INFLUENCE OF SUPERNOVA REMNANT THERMAL-ENERGY IN POWERING GALACTIC WINDS

Authors
Citation
Bk. Gibson, ON THE INFLUENCE OF SUPERNOVA REMNANT THERMAL-ENERGY IN POWERING GALACTIC WINDS, Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, 88(6), 1994, pp. 383-403
Citations number
NO
Language
INGLESE
art.tipo
Article
Categorie Soggetti
Astronomy & Astrophysics
ISSN journal
0035-872X
Volume
88
Issue
6
Year of publication
1994
Pages
383 - 403
Database
ISI
SICI code
0035-872X(1994)88:6<383:OTIOSR>2.0.ZU;2-V
Abstract
The fundamental tenet of the classical supernovae-driven wind model of elliptical galaxies is that the residual thermal energy of all supern ovae remnants (SNRs) provides sufficient energy to overcome the bindin g energy of the remaining interstellar gas, thereby driving a global g alactic wind. We re-examine model predictions of this epoch of wind ej ection, t(GW), highlighting a heretofore underappreciated sensitivity to the adopted remnant thermal energy formalism, and illustrating case s in which previous work may have substantially overestimated t(GW). A rguments based upon chemical evolution alone, put forth to reject the hypothesis of dark matter distributions similar to the luminous compon ent in spheroids, are shown to be tenuous. Finally, the predicted enri chment of intracluster gas during the wind phase of cluster elliptical s, and its relation to the selected SNR interior thermal energy evolut ionary scheme, is addressed. Despite the success of previous wind mode ls, our results still call into question the correctness of the simple analytical approach used thus far, and imply that a more appropriate technique should be adopted in the future.