What slows down star-formation in a galaxy? This is the answer

Galaxies are not just a massive collection of stars. They are also stellar nurseries. New stars form and old die-out. However, the rate at which new stars are formed is not constant universally. Some galaxies form new stars at a greater rate while others are in a state of semi-retirement, that is, star formation is taking place at a much lower rate in these galaxies.

What is the reason behind these varying rates of star formation? What causes the rate of star formation to lower? These and some other questions have been in focus of space research for decades.

A study has pointed at the reason why star formation slows down in a galaxy. The answer is, supermassive black holes.

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Supermassive black holes have mass millions or even billions of times of that of the Sun. Supermassive black holes are found at the centre of spiral galaxies. Their unimaginably strong gravitational force holds the entire galaxy together.

To find out what slows down star formation in a galaxy, researchers from the University of Cambridge used three state-of-the-art cosmological simulations -- EAGLE, Illustris and IllustrisTNG.

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The researchers applied a machine-learning algorithm and classified galaxies into two types, 'star-forming' and 'quiescent'

The new simulations predicted that mass of the supermassive black hole was most important factor slowing down star formation in a galaxy.