Cosmological galaxy evolution with superbubble feedback – I. Realistic galaxies with moderate feedback

We present the first cosmological galaxy evolved using the modern smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) code gasoline2 with superbubble feedback. We show that superbubble-driven galactic outflows powered by Type II supernovae alone can produce L* galaxies with flat rotation curves with circular velocities ∼ 200 km s− 1, low bulge-to-disc ratios, and stellar mass fractions that match observed values from high redshift to the present. These features are made possible by the high mass loadings generated by the evaporative growth of superbubbles. Outflows are driven extremely effectively at high redshift, expelling gas at early times and preventing overproduction of stars before z = 2. Centrally concentrated gas in previous simulations has often lead to unrealistically high bulge to total ratios and strongly peaked rotation curves. We show that supernova-powered superbubbles alone can produce galaxies that agree well with observed properties without the need for additional feedback mechanisms or increased feedback energy. We present additional results arising from properly modelled hot feedback.