MAUVE-MUSE: A Star Formation-driven Outflow Caught in the Act of Quenching the Stripped Virgo Galaxy NGC 4064

TL;DR

This study presents direct evidence of a star formation-driven outflow in the Virgo galaxy NGC 4064, showing that feedback from residual star formation can accelerate gas removal and quenching in satellite galaxies.

Contribution

It provides the first direct observation of a feedback-driven outflow in a stripped satellite galaxy, highlighting its role in rapid quenching.

Findings

Detected a bi-polar ionized gas outflow in NGC 4064

Outflow mass loading factor is approximately 2

Residual star formation can drive efficient feedback in stripped satellites

Abstract

The rapid quenching of satellite galaxies in dense environments is often attributed to environmental processes such as ram pressure stripping. However, stripping alone cannot fully account for the removal of dense, star-forming gas in many satellites, particularly in their inner regions. Recent models and indirect observations have suggested that star formation-driven outflows may play a critical role in expelling this remaining gas, yet direct evidence for such feedback-driven quenching remains limited. Here we report the discovery of an ionized gas outflow in NGC 4064, a Virgo cluster satellite that has already lost most of its cold gas through environmental stripping. MUSE observations from the Multiphase Astrophysics to Unveil the Virgo Environment (MAUVE) survey reveal a bi-polar outflow driven by residual, centrally concentrated star formation in NGC 4064 - despite its current star formation rate being ~0.4 dex below the star-forming main sequence due to prior interaction with the cluster environment. The outflow's mass loading factor is ~2, suggesting that stellar feedback could remove the remaining gas on timescales shorter than those required for depletion by star formation alone. These results demonstrate that even modest but centrally concentrated star formation can drive efficient feedback in stripped satellites, accelerating quenching in the final stages of their evolution.