A massive quiescent galaxy at redshift 4.658

Abstract

The extremely rapid assembly of the earliest galaxies during the first billion years of cosmic history is a major challenge for our understanding of galaxy formation physics. The advent of JWST has exacerbated this issue by confirming the existence of galaxies in significant numbers as early as the first few hundred million years. Perhaps even more surprisingly, in some galaxies, this initial highly efficient star formation rapidly shuts down, or quenches, giving rise to massive quiescent galaxies as little as 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. However, due to their faintness and red colour, it has proven extremely challenging to learn about these extreme quiescent galaxies, or to confirm whether any exist at earlier times. Here we report the spectroscopic confirmation of a massive quiescent galaxy, GS-9209, at redshift $z=4.658$, just 1.25 billion years after the Big Bang, using JWST NIRSpec. From these data we infer a stellar mass of $M_{\ast }=3.8\pm 0.2\times 10^{10}{M}_{\odot }$, which formed over a $\simeq 200$ Myr period before this galaxy quenched its star formation activity at $z=6.5_{-0.5}^{+0.2}$, when the Universe was $\simeq 800$ million years old. Based on the presence of broad H$\alpha$ in the spectrum and a high narrow-line [NII]/H$\alpha$ ratio, we infer the presence of an accreting supermassive black hole, with a mass of $M_{\bullet }=5\pm 1\times 10^8{M}_{\odot }$. This large black hole mass relative to the stellar mass suggests that active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback may have been responsible for quenching this galaxy. GS-9209 is also extremely compact, with an effective radius, $r_e=215\pm 20$ parsecs. This galaxy is both a likely descendent of the highest-redshift submillimetre galaxies and quasars, and a likely progenitor for the dense, ancient cores of the most massive local galaxies.

arXiv comment23 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in Nature

References in corpus (65)

• Stellar population synthesis at the resolution of 2003
• The chemical composition of the Sun
• On the variation of the Initial Mass Function
• The Dust Content and Opacity of Actively Star-Forming Galaxies
• PARSEC: stellar tracks and isochrones with the PAdova and TRieste Stellar Evolution Code
• Coevolution (Or Not) of Supermassive Black Holes and Host Galaxies
• Star Formation in the Milky Way and Nearby Galaxies
• Stellar Masses and Star Formation Histories for 10^5 Galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• Composite Quasar Spectra From the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• X-ray spectral modelling of the AGN obscuring region in the CDFS: Bayesian model selection and catalogue
• MILES: A Medium resolution INT Library of Empirical Spectra
• 3D-HST+CANDELS: The Evolution of the Galaxy Size-Mass Distribution since $z=3$
• Importance Nested Sampling and the MultiNest Algorithm
• Estimating Black Hole Masses in Active Galaxies Using the Halpha Emission Line
• Inferring the star-formation histories of massive quiescent galaxies with BAGPIPES: Evidence for multiple quenching mechanisms
• Stellar Population Inference with Prospector
• A population of red candidate massive galaxies ~600 Myr after the Big Bang
• Dust Attenuation Curves in the Local Universe: Demographics and New Laws for Star-forming Galaxies and High-redshift Analogs
• How to Measure Galaxy Star Formation Histories II: Nonparametric Models
• The Chandra Deep Field-South Survey: 7 Ms Source Catalogs
• CANDELS Multi-wavelength Catalogs: Source Detection and Photometry in the GOODS-South Field
• An updated analytic model for the attenuation by the intergalactic medium
• Theoretical Evolution of Optical Strong Lines across Cosmic Time
• Evidence of strong quasar feedback in the early Universe
• The evolution of the galaxy UV luminosity function at redshifts z ~ 8-15 from deep JWST and ground-based near-infrared imaging
• Old Galaxies in the Young Universe
• Modelling and interpreting spectral energy distributions of galaxies with BEAGLE
• Evolution of Thermally Pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars I. The COLIBRI Code
• The MOSDEF Survey: The Evolution of the Mass-Metallicity Relation from $z=0$ to $z\sim 3.3$
• Predicting dust extinction from the stellar mass of a galaxy
• How to measure galaxy star-formation histories I: Parametric models
• A massive, quiescent galaxy at redshift of z=3.717
• Near infrared spectroscopy and star-formation histories of 3<z<4 quiescent galaxies
• The z = 9-10 galaxy population in the Hubble Frontier Fields and CLASH surveys: The z=9 LF and further evidence for a smooth decline in UV luminosity at z >= 8
• Rapidly star-forming galaxies adjacent to quasars at redshifts exceeding 6
• Quiescent galaxies 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang and their progenitors
• The VANDELS survey: the star-formation histories of massive quiescent galaxies at 1.0 < z < 1.3
• Post-starburst galaxies: more than just an interesting curiosity
• On the evolution of the black hole:spheroid mass ratio
• The evolution of star formation histories of quiescent galaxies
• The Art of Measuring Physical Parameters in Galaxies: A Critical Assessment of Spectral Energy Distribution Fitting Techniques
• A surprising abundance of massive quiescent galaxies at 3 < z < 5 in the first data from JWST CEERS
• The sub-mJy radio sky in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South: source population
• A Maximum Stellar Surface Density in Dense Stellar Systems
• Subaru High-z Exploration of Low-Luminosity Quasars (SHELLQs). VI. Black Hole Mass Measurements of Six Quasars at 6.1<z<6.7
• A massive, quiescent, population II galaxy at a redshift of 2.1
• A Catalog of Local E+A(post-starburst) Galaxies selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 5
• GMASS ultradeep spectroscopy of galaxies at z ~ 2. IV. The variety of dust populations
• The SCUBA-2 Cosmology Legacy Survey: the nature of bright submm galaxies from 2 deg2 of 850-um imaging
• Massive post-starburst galaxies at z > 1 are compact proto-spheroids
• Resolving Quiescent Galaxies at $z\gtrsim 2$: II. Direct Measures of Rotational Support
• Timing the earliest quenching events with a robust sample of massive quiescent galaxies at 2 < z < 5
• The star formation histories of z~1 post-starburst galaxies
• Chasing passive galaxies in the early Universe: a critical analysis in CANDELS GOODS-South
• Massive and old quiescent galaxies at high redshift
• Two more, bright, z > 6 quasars from VST ATLAS and WISE
• The emergence of passive galaxies in the early Universe
• The MOSDEF Survey: Implications of the Lack of Evolution in the Dust Attenuation-Mass Relation to z~2
• PetroFit: A Python Package for Computing Petrosian Radii and Fitting Galaxy Light Profiles
• High-velocity outflows in massive post-starburst galaxies at z > 1
• The stellar metallicities of massive quiescent galaxies at 1.0 < z < 1.3 from KMOS+VANDELS
• Passive galaxies in the early Universe: ALMA confirmation of z~3-5 candidates in the CANDELS GOODS-South field
• A combined VANDELS and LEGA-C study: the evolution of quiescent galaxy size, stellar mass and age from $\text{z}=0.6$ to $\text{z}=1.3$
• Rise of the Titans: Gas Excitation and Feedback in a Binary Hyper-Luminous Dusty Starburst Galaxy at z~6
• Astrometric and Wavelength Calibration of the NIRSpec Instrument during Commissioning using a model-based approach

Cited by in corpus (89)

• JADES. The diverse population of infant Black Holes at 4<z<11: merging, tiny, poor, but mighty
• JWST CEERS & JADES Active Galaxies at z = 4-7 Violate the Local $M_{\bullet }-M_{\star }$ Relation at $>3\sigma$: Implications for Low-Mass Black Holes and Seeding Models
• RUBIES: Evolved Stellar Populations with Extended Formation Histories at $z\sim 7-8$ in Candidate Massive Galaxies Identified with JWST/NIRSpec
• A massive galaxy that formed its stars at $z\sim 11$
• RUBIES: a complete census of the bright and red distant Universe with JWST/NIRSpec
• A dormant, overmassive black hole in the early Universe
• JADES: A large population of obscured, narrow line AGN at high redshift
• Star Formation Shut Down by Multiphase Gas Outflow in a Galaxy at a Redshift of 2.45
• RUBIES: JWST/NIRSpec Confirmation of an Infrared-luminous, Broad-line Little Red Dot with an Ionized Outflow
• Mini-quenching of $z=4-8$ galaxies by bursty star formation
• UNCOVER: 404 Error -- Models Not Found for the Triply Imaged Little Red Dot A2744-QSO1
• Seven wonders of Cosmic Dawn: JWST confirms a high abundance of galaxies and AGNs at z $\simeq$ 9-11 in the GLASS field
• Galaxy Mergers in the Epoch of Reionization I: A JWST Study of Pair Fractions, Merger Rates, and Stellar Mass Accretion Rates at $z=4.5-11.5$
• JADES + JEMS: A Detailed Look at the Buildup of Central Stellar Cores and Suppression of Star Formation in Galaxies at Redshifts 3 < z < 4.5
• Little Red Dots or Brown Dwarfs? NIRSpec Discovery of Three Distant Brown Dwarfs Masquerading as NIRCam-Selected Highly-Reddened AGNs
• JADES: comprehensive census of broad-line AGN from Reionization to Cosmic Noon revealed by JWST
• Unveiling the hidden universe with JWST: The contribution of dust-obscured galaxies to the stellar mass function at $z\sim 3-8$
• Cosmic Vine: A z=3.44 large-scale structure hosting massive quiescent galaxies
• Observable and ionizing properties of star-forming galaxies with very massive stars and different IMFs
• The NIRSpec Wide GTO Survey
• The Dual Nature of GHZ9: Coexisting Active Galactic Nuclei and Star Formation Activity in a Remote X-ray Source at z = 10.145
• Gas outflows in two recently quenched galaxies at z = 4 and 7
• AGN Feedback in Quiescent Galaxies at Cosmic Noon Traced by Ionized Gas Emission
• Exploring over 700 massive quiescent galaxies at z = 2-7: Demographics and stellar mass functions
• JWST/MIRI reveals the true number density of massive galaxies in the early Universe
• On the origin of star formation quenching in massive galaxies at $z\gtrsim 3$ in the cosmological simulations IllustrisTNG
• Direct-collapse supermassive black holes from relic particle decay
• A direct black hole mass measurement in a Little Red Dot at the Epoch of Reionization
• DAWN JWST Archive: Morphology from profile fitting of over 340 000 galaxies in major fields
• PANORAMIC: Discovery of an Ultra-Massive Grand-Design Spiral Galaxy at $z\sim 5.2$
• The [CII] 158 $\mu$m emission line as a gas mass tracer in high redshift quiescent galaxies
• Dead or Alive? How Bursty Star Formation and Patchy Dust Can Cause Temporary Quiescence in High Redshift Galaxies
• JADES: Rest-frame UV-to-NIR Size Evolution of Massive Quiescent Galaxies from Redshift z=5 to z=0.5
• SHELLQs. Bridging the Gap: JWST Unveils Obscured Quasars in the Most Luminous Galaxies at z > 6
• Accelerated quenching and chemical enhancement of massive galaxies in a $z\sim 4$ gas-rich halo
• JADES reveals a large population of low mass black holes at high redshift
• Explaining ultra-massive quiescent galaxies at $3<z<5$ in the context of their environments
• The Nature and Evolution of Early Massive Quenched Galaxies in the Simba-C Simulation
• PRIMER & JADES reveal an abundance of massive quiescent galaxies at 2 < z < 5
• Feeding plankton to whales: high-redshift supermassive black holes from tiny black hole explosions
• JWST/NIRSpec spectroscopy of intermediate-mass quiescent galaxies at $z\sim 3-4$
• Exploring Cosmic Dawn with PANORAMIC I: The Bright End of the UVLF at $z\sim 9-17$
• Exploring Spatially-Resolved Metallicities, Dynamics and Outflows in Low-Mass Galaxies at $z\sim 7.6$
• GA-NIFS: Mapping $z\simeq 3.5$ AGN-driven ionized outflows in the COSMOS field
• SHELLQs-JWST Unveils the Host Galaxies of 12 Quasars at z>6
• On the Origin of the High Star-Formation Efficiency in Massive Galaxies at Cosmic Dawn
• Probing galaxy evolution from $z=0$ to $z\simeq 10$ through galaxy scaling relations in three L-Galaxies flavours
• MAGAZ3NE: Massive, Extremely Dusty Galaxies at $z\sim 2$ Lead to Photometric Overestimation of Number Densities of the Most Massive Galaxies at $3<z<4$
• The Carousel Lens: A Well-Modeled Strong Lens with Multiple Lensed Sources
• Galaxy Mergers in the Epoch of Reionization II: Major Merger-Triggered Star Formation and AGN Activities at $z=$ 4.5-8.5
• Double Trouble: Two spectroscopically confirmed low-mass quiescent galaxies at z>5 in overdensities
• RUBIES spectroscopically confirms the high number density of quiescent galaxies from $2<\mathbf{z}<5$
• When relics were made: vigorous stellar rotation and low dark matter content in the massive ultra-compact galaxy GS-9209 at z=4.66
• The formation of compact massive relic galaxies in MOND
• Overmassive black holes in the early Universe can be explained by gas-rich, dark matter-dominated galaxies
• A population of Optically Quiescent Quasars from WISE and SDSS
• Monster radio jet (>66 kpc) observed in quasar at z$\sim$5
• Where Have All the Little Red Dots Gone? Supermassive Black Hole Binary Dynamics and its Impact on Galaxy Properties
• The dark side of early galaxies: $\text{geko}$ uncovers dark-matter fractions at $z\sim 4-6$
• On the unique evolutionary mechanisms of massive quiescent galaxies in the epoch of reionisation
• A${}^3$COSMOS: The dust content of massive quiescent galaxies and its evolution with cosmic time
• Extreme Neutral Outflow in a non-AGN Quiescent Galaxy at z~1.3
• Black hole mass of a quiescent galaxy hosting a Type 1 AGN at z=2.09: Implications for black hole - galaxy co-evolution and AGN quenching at high redshift
• A census of quiescent galaxies across $0.5<z<8$ with JWST/MIRI: Mass-dependent number density evolution of quiescent galaxies in the early Universe
• Performance of Photometric Template Fitting for Ultra-High Redshift Galaxies
• Cosmic Vine: High abundance of massive galaxies and dark matter halos in a forming cluster at z=3.44
• An optically-dark merging system at z~6 detected by JWST
• TP-AGB stars and stellar population properties of a post-starburst galaxy at $z\sim 2$ through optical and NIR spectroscopy with JWST
• Extended Enriched Gas in a Multi-Galaxy Merger at Redshift 6.7
• The diverse quenching pathways of post-starburst galaxies in SDSS-IV MaNGA
• Cosmic quenching and scaling laws for the evolution of supermassive black holes and host galaxies
• Extreme Galaxy-scale Outflows Are Frequent among Luminous Early Quasars
• Compact dust-obscured star-formation and the origin of the galaxy bimodality
• Evolution of Size, Mass, and Density of Galaxies Since Cosmic Dawn
• The Cliff: A Metal-Poor Little Red Dot Hosting an Overmassive Black Hole at $z=3.55$
• SUNRISE-3D: Sharp UNveiling of AGN feedback Regulation and its Impact on Star-formation at the cosmic noon Epoch
• Neutrino masses, matter-antimatter asymmetry, dark matter, and supermassive black hole formation explained with Majorons
• MIDIS: Unveiling the Star Formation History in massive galaxies at $1<z<4.5$ with spectro-photometric analysis
• The Connection between Dusty Star-Forming Galaxies and the First Massive Quenched Galaxies
• LEGA-C stellar populations scaling relations. II: Dissecting mass-complete archaeological trends and their evolution since z~0.7 with LEGA-C and SDSS
• Dynamical properties and star formation history of a low-mass quenched galaxy at Cosmic Noon
• Tidal disruption event rates across cosmic time: forecasts for LSST, Roman, and JWST and their constraints on the supermassive black hole mass function
• A stellar dynamical mass measurement of an inactive black hole at redshift 2
• A big step forward with SHARP: spatially resolved stellar population properties in passive galaxies at z > 1.5
• The LEGA-C galaxy survey: multiple quenching channels for quiescent galaxies at $z\sim 1$
• Recent star formation in 0.5<z<1.5 quiescent galaxies
• Euclid: A blue galaxy population and a brightest cluster galaxy in the making in a $z\sim 1.74$ MaDCoWS2 galaxy cluster candidate
• The Cosmic Rush Hour: Rapid Formation of Bright, Massive, Disky, Star-Forming Galaxies as Signatures of Early-Universe Physics
• Massive black holes in the first billion years with JWST