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Main Authors: Zhou, Shuang, Iovino, Angela, Longhetti, Marcella, La Barbera, Francesco, Costantin, Luca
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.18292
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author Zhou, Shuang
Iovino, Angela
Longhetti, Marcella
La Barbera, Francesco
Costantin, Luca
author_facet Zhou, Shuang
Iovino, Angela
Longhetti, Marcella
La Barbera, Francesco
Costantin, Luca
contents We investigate the evolutionary pathways of green valley (GV) galaxies drawn from the SDSS-IV/MaNGA survey. The GV sample is divided into fast- and slow-rotating galaxies based on stellar spin, and their stellar and gas-phase metallicities are compared. Fast-rotating galaxies exhibit systematically higher metallicities than slow-rotating galaxies in both gas and stars. However, the gas-phase difference is significant only at low stellar masses, while the stellar metallicity offset persists across the full mass range. Using a simple yet physically motivated chemical evolution model, optimised to jointly fit gas-phase metallicities and integrated stellar spectra, we reconstruct the star formation and chemical enrichment histories of individual galaxies and constrain gas inflow and outflow parameters. At low stellar masses, fast- and slow-rotating galaxies show similar gas-infall and star formation timescales, but the the slower population experienced stronger outflows which reduce their chemical content in both gas and stars. At high masses, the combination of reduced pristine gas inflow and more efficient gas removal in slow-rotating galaxies produce gas-phase metallicities comparable to fast-rotating galaxies but systematically lower stellar metallicities. These differences suggest distinct evolutionary pathways for GV galaxies. Slow-rotating galaxies likely experienced more mergers, usually associated with strong gas removal processes, leading to their systematically lower metallicities. At low masses, stronger supernova-driven outflows reduce their chemical content while leaving star-formation timescales similar to fast-rotating galaxies. At high masses, merger-triggered AGN feedback may rapidly deplete and suppress gas infall, producing the shorter star-formation timescales seen in slow-rotating galaxies. Alternative environmental and assembly-driven scenarios are also discussed.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_18292
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Contrasting evolutionary pathways of fast- and slow-rotating galaxies in the green valley
Zhou, Shuang
Iovino, Angela
Longhetti, Marcella
La Barbera, Francesco
Costantin, Luca
Astrophysics of Galaxies
We investigate the evolutionary pathways of green valley (GV) galaxies drawn from the SDSS-IV/MaNGA survey. The GV sample is divided into fast- and slow-rotating galaxies based on stellar spin, and their stellar and gas-phase metallicities are compared. Fast-rotating galaxies exhibit systematically higher metallicities than slow-rotating galaxies in both gas and stars. However, the gas-phase difference is significant only at low stellar masses, while the stellar metallicity offset persists across the full mass range. Using a simple yet physically motivated chemical evolution model, optimised to jointly fit gas-phase metallicities and integrated stellar spectra, we reconstruct the star formation and chemical enrichment histories of individual galaxies and constrain gas inflow and outflow parameters. At low stellar masses, fast- and slow-rotating galaxies show similar gas-infall and star formation timescales, but the the slower population experienced stronger outflows which reduce their chemical content in both gas and stars. At high masses, the combination of reduced pristine gas inflow and more efficient gas removal in slow-rotating galaxies produce gas-phase metallicities comparable to fast-rotating galaxies but systematically lower stellar metallicities. These differences suggest distinct evolutionary pathways for GV galaxies. Slow-rotating galaxies likely experienced more mergers, usually associated with strong gas removal processes, leading to their systematically lower metallicities. At low masses, stronger supernova-driven outflows reduce their chemical content while leaving star-formation timescales similar to fast-rotating galaxies. At high masses, merger-triggered AGN feedback may rapidly deplete and suppress gas infall, producing the shorter star-formation timescales seen in slow-rotating galaxies. Alternative environmental and assembly-driven scenarios are also discussed.
title Contrasting evolutionary pathways of fast- and slow-rotating galaxies in the green valley
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.18292