The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background
The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) anisotropies, corrected for foreground effects, form the foundation of cosmology and support the Big Bang model. A previously overlooked foreground component is the formation of massive early-type galaxies (ETGs), which can no longer be ignored, particularly in...
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Elsevier
2025-08-01
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| Series: | Nuclear Physics B |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0550321325001403 |
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| author | Eda Gjergo Pavel Kroupa |
| author_facet | Eda Gjergo Pavel Kroupa |
| author_sort | Eda Gjergo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) anisotropies, corrected for foreground effects, form the foundation of cosmology and support the Big Bang model. A previously overlooked foreground component is the formation of massive early-type galaxies (ETGs), which can no longer be ignored, particularly in light of JWST's detection of massive, evolved systems at extreme redshifts (z>13). The rapid formation of massive ETGs has been advocated in galaxy evolution studies for decades, and recent evidence has compelled even proponents of hierarchical mass assembly to acknowledge the fact that massive ETGs evolve quickly. Constraints from chemical evolution are particularly stringent. Without both intense star formation and a top-heavy galaxy-wide initial mass function of stars (IMF), it is difficult to reconcile stellar population synthesis models with the high metallicity and abundance patterns of α-elements. We infer from previous studies that the progenitor cloud of each massive ETG must have had a radius of ≈400 kpc. Comparing this value to the average present-day separation of massive ETGs, their formation may have occurred around 15<z<20. We consider this epoch of formation in a flat-ΛCDM cosmological context, incorporating the known and necessary properties of massive ETGs – properties encapsulated independently by the integrated galaxy-wide IMF (IGIMF) theory. The massive ETG evolution presented in this work is consistent with recent advancements in stellar and galaxy evolution, and is derived entirely without priors or constraints from the CMB. Yet, it emerges as a non-negligible source of CMB foreground contamination. Even in our most conservative estimates, massive ETGs account for 1.4% up to the full present-day CMB energy density. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3b070c8ee5b84f1a9995bb173a0fa7b0 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 0550-3213 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
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| series | Nuclear Physics B |
| spelling | doaj-art-3b070c8ee5b84f1a9995bb173a0fa7b02025-08-20T03:09:19ZengElsevierNuclear Physics B0550-32132025-08-01101711693110.1016/j.nuclphysb.2025.116931The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave backgroundEda Gjergo0Pavel Kroupa1School of Astronomy and Space Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China; Key Laboratory of Modern Astronomy and Astrophysics, Nanjing University, Ministry of Education, Nanjing, 210093, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China; Corresponding author.Helmholtz-Institut für Strahlen- und Kernphysik, Universität Bonn, Nussallee 14-16, Bonn, 53115, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany; Astronomical Institute Charles University, V Holesovickach 2, Praha, 18000, Bohemia, Czech RepublicThe Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) anisotropies, corrected for foreground effects, form the foundation of cosmology and support the Big Bang model. A previously overlooked foreground component is the formation of massive early-type galaxies (ETGs), which can no longer be ignored, particularly in light of JWST's detection of massive, evolved systems at extreme redshifts (z>13). The rapid formation of massive ETGs has been advocated in galaxy evolution studies for decades, and recent evidence has compelled even proponents of hierarchical mass assembly to acknowledge the fact that massive ETGs evolve quickly. Constraints from chemical evolution are particularly stringent. Without both intense star formation and a top-heavy galaxy-wide initial mass function of stars (IMF), it is difficult to reconcile stellar population synthesis models with the high metallicity and abundance patterns of α-elements. We infer from previous studies that the progenitor cloud of each massive ETG must have had a radius of ≈400 kpc. Comparing this value to the average present-day separation of massive ETGs, their formation may have occurred around 15<z<20. We consider this epoch of formation in a flat-ΛCDM cosmological context, incorporating the known and necessary properties of massive ETGs – properties encapsulated independently by the integrated galaxy-wide IMF (IGIMF) theory. The massive ETG evolution presented in this work is consistent with recent advancements in stellar and galaxy evolution, and is derived entirely without priors or constraints from the CMB. Yet, it emerges as a non-negligible source of CMB foreground contamination. Even in our most conservative estimates, massive ETGs account for 1.4% up to the full present-day CMB energy density.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0550321325001403CosmologyAstrophysicsCosmic microwave backgroundEvolution of the universeEarly-type galaxies |
| spellingShingle | Eda Gjergo Pavel Kroupa The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background Nuclear Physics B Cosmology Astrophysics Cosmic microwave background Evolution of the universe Early-type galaxies |
| title | The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background |
| title_full | The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background |
| title_fullStr | The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background |
| title_full_unstemmed | The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background |
| title_short | The impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background |
| title_sort | impact of early massive galaxy formation on the cosmic microwave background |
| topic | Cosmology Astrophysics Cosmic microwave background Evolution of the universe Early-type galaxies |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0550321325001403 |
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