IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/nature/v442y2006i7104d10.1038_nature05052.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The rapid formation of a large rotating disk galaxy three billion years after the Big Bang

Author

Listed:
  • R. Genzel

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE)
    Le Conte Hall, University of California)

  • L. J. Tacconi

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • F. Eisenhauer

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • N. M. Förster Schreiber

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • A. Cimatti

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE)
    Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica, Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri)

  • E. Daddi

    (National Optical Astronomy Observatory)

  • N. Bouché

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • R. Davies

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • M. D. Lehnert

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • D. Lutz

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • N. Nesvadba

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • A. Verma

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • R. Abuter

    (Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE))

  • K. Shapiro

    (University of California)

  • A. Sternberg

    (Tel Aviv University)

  • A. Renzini

    (Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova)

  • X. Kong

    (University of Science and Technology of China)

  • N. Arimoto

    (National Astronomical Observatory)

  • M. Mignoli

    (Osservatorio Astronomico di Bologna)

Abstract

An epoch-making galaxy Large ground-based telescopes equipped with the latest near-infrared imaging spectroscopes and adaptive optics are capable of observing events that took place at a crucial period of galaxy formation, about 3 billion years after the Big Bang, when the Universe was only about 20% of its present age. Observations of a high-redshift (z=2.38) star-forming galaxy from this epoch reveal its internal structure. A massive rotating protodisk is channelling gas towards an accreting black hole in a central stellar bulge. Previously the timescales and processes involved in the hierarchical build-up of galaxies were matters of conjecture; now they are the stuff of observation.

Suggested Citation

  • R. Genzel & L. J. Tacconi & F. Eisenhauer & N. M. Förster Schreiber & A. Cimatti & E. Daddi & N. Bouché & R. Davies & M. D. Lehnert & D. Lutz & N. Nesvadba & A. Verma & R. Abuter & K. Shapiro & A. Ste, 2006. "The rapid formation of a large rotating disk galaxy three billion years after the Big Bang," Nature, Nature, vol. 442(7104), pages 786-789, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:442:y:2006:i:7104:d:10.1038_nature05052
    DOI: 10.1038/nature05052
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature05052
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/nature05052?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:442:y:2006:i:7104:d:10.1038_nature05052. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.