The Lowest Metallicity Stars in the LMC: Clues from MaGICC Simulations

Abstract

Using a cosmological hydrodynamical simulation of a galaxy of similar mass to the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), we examine the predicted characteristics of its lowest metallicity populations. In particular, we emphasise the spatial distributions of first (Pop III) and second (polluted by only immediate Pop III ancestors) generation stars. We find that primordial composition stars form not only in the central galaxy's progenitor, but also in locally collapsed subhaloes during the early phases of galaxy formation. The lowest metallicity stars in these subhaloes end up in a relatively extended distribution around the host, with these accreted stars possessing present-day galactocentric distances as great as similar to 40 kpc. By contrast, the earliest stars formed within the central galaxy remain in the inner region, where the vast majority of star formation occurs, for the entirety of the simulation. Consequently, the fraction of stars that are from the earliest generation increases strongly with radius.