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The AGORA High-Resolution Galaxy Simulations Comparison Project VII. Satellite quenching in zoom-in simulation of a Milky Way-mass halo

Rodríguez-Cardoso, Ramón ; Roca-Fàbrega, Santi LU orcid ; Jung, Minyong ; Nguyễn, Thinh H. ; Kim, Ji Hoon ; Primack, Joel ; Agertz, Oscar LU ; Barrow, Kirk S.S. ; Gallego, Jesus and Nagamine, Kentaro , et al. (2025) In Astronomy and Astrophysics 698.
Abstract

Context. Satellite galaxies experience multiple physical processes when interacting with their host halos, often leading to the quenching of star formation. In the Local Group, satellite quenching has been shown to be highly efficient, affecting nearly all satellites except the most massive ones. While recent surveys study Milky Way-analogs to assess how representative our Local Group is, the dominant physical mechanisms behind satellite quenching in Milky Way-mass halos remain under debate. Aims. We analyze satellite quenching within the same Milky Way-mass halo simulated using various widely used astrophysical codes, each using different hydrodynamic methods and implementing different supernovae feedback recipes. The goal is to... (More)

Context. Satellite galaxies experience multiple physical processes when interacting with their host halos, often leading to the quenching of star formation. In the Local Group, satellite quenching has been shown to be highly efficient, affecting nearly all satellites except the most massive ones. While recent surveys study Milky Way-analogs to assess how representative our Local Group is, the dominant physical mechanisms behind satellite quenching in Milky Way-mass halos remain under debate. Aims. We analyze satellite quenching within the same Milky Way-mass halo simulated using various widely used astrophysical codes, each using different hydrodynamic methods and implementing different supernovae feedback recipes. The goal is to determine whether quenched fractions, quenching timescales, and the dominant quenching mechanisms are consistent across codes or if they show sensitivity to the specific hydrodynamic method and supernovae feedback physics employed. Methods. We used a subset of high-resolution cosmological zoom-in simulations of a Milky Way-mass halo from the multiple-code AGORA CosmoRun suite. Our analysis focuses on comparing satellite quenching across the different models and against observational data. We also analyzed the dominant mechanisms driving satellite quenching in each model. Results. We find that the quenched fraction is consistent with the latest SAGA Survey results within its 1σ host-to-host scatter across all the models. Regarding quenching timescales, all the models reproduce the trend observed in the ELVES survey, Local Group observations, and previous simulations: The less massive the satellite, the shorter its quenching timescale. All of our models converge on the dominant quenching mechanisms: Strangulation halts cold gas accretion in all satellites, while ram pressure stripping is the predominant mechanism for gas removal, and it is particularly effective in satellites with M∗ < 108 M . Nevertheless, the efficiency of the stripping mechanisms differs among the codes, showing a strong sensitivity to the different supernovae feedback implementations and/or hydrodynamic methods employed.

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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
galaxies: dwarf, galaxies: evolution, galaxies: interactions, galaxies: star formation, Local Group, methods: numerical
in
Astronomy and Astrophysics
volume
698
article number
A303
publisher
EDP Sciences
external identifiers
  • scopus:105009635202
ISSN
0004-6361
DOI
10.1051/0004-6361/202453639
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © The Authors 2025.
id
e995fb7c-57e8-46a7-b7e6-4524e67aa838
date added to LUP
2025-12-17 14:21:14
date last changed
2025-12-17 14:21:33
@article{e995fb7c-57e8-46a7-b7e6-4524e67aa838,
  abstract     = {{<p>Context. Satellite galaxies experience multiple physical processes when interacting with their host halos, often leading to the quenching of star formation. In the Local Group, satellite quenching has been shown to be highly efficient, affecting nearly all satellites except the most massive ones. While recent surveys study Milky Way-analogs to assess how representative our Local Group is, the dominant physical mechanisms behind satellite quenching in Milky Way-mass halos remain under debate. Aims. We analyze satellite quenching within the same Milky Way-mass halo simulated using various widely used astrophysical codes, each using different hydrodynamic methods and implementing different supernovae feedback recipes. The goal is to determine whether quenched fractions, quenching timescales, and the dominant quenching mechanisms are consistent across codes or if they show sensitivity to the specific hydrodynamic method and supernovae feedback physics employed. Methods. We used a subset of high-resolution cosmological zoom-in simulations of a Milky Way-mass halo from the multiple-code AGORA CosmoRun suite. Our analysis focuses on comparing satellite quenching across the different models and against observational data. We also analyzed the dominant mechanisms driving satellite quenching in each model. Results. We find that the quenched fraction is consistent with the latest SAGA Survey results within its 1σ host-to-host scatter across all the models. Regarding quenching timescales, all the models reproduce the trend observed in the ELVES survey, Local Group observations, and previous simulations: The less massive the satellite, the shorter its quenching timescale. All of our models converge on the dominant quenching mechanisms: Strangulation halts cold gas accretion in all satellites, while ram pressure stripping is the predominant mechanism for gas removal, and it is particularly effective in satellites with M<sub>∗</sub> &lt; 10<sup>8</sup> M . Nevertheless, the efficiency of the stripping mechanisms differs among the codes, showing a strong sensitivity to the different supernovae feedback implementations and/or hydrodynamic methods employed.</p>}},
  author       = {{Rodríguez-Cardoso, Ramón and Roca-Fàbrega, Santi and Jung, Minyong and Nguyễn, Thinh H. and Kim, Ji Hoon and Primack, Joel and Agertz, Oscar and Barrow, Kirk S.S. and Gallego, Jesus and Nagamine, Kentaro and Powell, Johnny W. and Revaz, Yves and Velázquez, Hector and Genina, Anna and Kim, Hyeonyong and Lupi, Alessandro and Abel, Tom and Cen, Renyue and Ceverino, Daniel and Dekel, Avishai and Oh, Boon Kiat and Quinn, Thomas R.}},
  issn         = {{0004-6361}},
  keywords     = {{galaxies: dwarf; galaxies: evolution; galaxies: interactions; galaxies: star formation; Local Group; methods: numerical}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{06}},
  publisher    = {{EDP Sciences}},
  series       = {{Astronomy and Astrophysics}},
  title        = {{The AGORA High-Resolution Galaxy Simulations Comparison Project VII. Satellite quenching in zoom-in simulation of a Milky Way-mass halo}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202453639}},
  doi          = {{10.1051/0004-6361/202453639}},
  volume       = {{698}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}