Are galactic coronae thermally unstable?

TL;DR

This paper argues that galactic coronae are unlikely to undergo thermal instability, impacting models of galaxy evolution and the origin of high-velocity clouds.

Contribution

It provides a summary of arguments indicating galactic coronae are stable against thermal fragmentation, challenging previous assumptions.

Findings

Galactic coronae are not prone to thermal instability.

Implications for galaxy formation models and high-velocity cloud origins.

Supports stable hot gas reservoirs in galaxy evolution.

Abstract

A substantial fraction of the baryons of disk galaxies like the Milky Way is expected to reside in coronae of gas at the virial temperature. This is the only realistic reservoir of gas available to feed star formation in the disks. The way this feeding occurs depends crucially on whether galactic coronae can fragment into cool clouds via thermal instability. Here I summarize arguments suggesting that galactic coronae are not prone to thermal instability, and I briefly discuss the implications for galaxy-formation models and for the origin of the high-velocity clouds of the Milky Way.