[Previous] | [Session 52] | [Next]
J.N. Bregman (University of Michigan)
Galactic winds in elliptical galaxies play an important role in the evolution of the interstellar medium in these systems. The relatively high rate of supernovae at early times leads to the outflow of material, which will pollute the surroundings with metals. Eventually, the supernova rate declines so that today, one expects a range of wind behavior. For galaxies whose optical luminosity is > L*, the potential well is deep enough to prevent winds from existing and these galaxies are accreting material; these tend to be the X-ray bright galaxies. Systems whose optical luminosity is significantly less than L* have shallow potential wells and the available supernova are sufficient to drive a wind, making these systems largely devoid of hot X-ray emitting gas. For optical luminosities near L*, many galaxies are expected to possess partial galactic winds. The evidence in support of this picture is building, largely from X-ray observations and recent ultraviolet observations.