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March 13, 2026The Astrophysical Journal Letters3 citationsOpen Access

First Statistical Detection of Mg ii -traced Cool Gas Outflows with JWST toward Cosmic Dawn

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CLChen LyuHYHang YuEWEnci Wang

Key Points

  • The aim is to investigate Mg ii -traced cool gas outflows in galaxies across a wide range of cosmic timelines.
  • Analyzed thousands of JWST/NIRSpec spectra using a spectral stacking technique.
  • Focused on the Mg ii λλ 2796, 2803 absorption doublet.
  • Examined galaxies from z ≈ 1 to z > 6 to identify outflow patterns.
  • Detected blueshifted Mg ii absorption in most stellar mass and redshift bins, excluding low-mass systems at z ∼ 1–2.
  • Found a positive correlation between outflow equivalent width and stellar mass (M*) across all epochs, with a slope of 1.21 ± 0.35.
  • Outflow velocities typically remain below the host halo escape velocities, supporting a galactic fountain scenario.

Abstract

Abstract Galactic-scale outflows are a crucial component of galaxy evolution, yet their properties in the early Universe remain poorly constrained. We present the first statistical investigation of Mg ii -traced cool gas outflows in galaxies spanning a wide cosmic timeline from z ≈ 1 to z > 6 (with sample coverage extending to z ∼ 10). Using thousands of public JWST/NIRSpec spectra, we employ a signal-to-noise-weighted spectral stacking technique on the Mg ii λλ 2796, 2803 absorption doublet. We robustly detect blueshifted Mg ii absorption in nearly all stellar mass and redshift bins, with the exception of the lowest-mass systems at z ∼ 1–2. The outflow equivalent width exhibits a positive correlation with stellar mass ( M * ) at all epochs, with the fitted slope of 1.21 ± 0.35. Our work provides the first statistical constraints on Mg ii -traced cool outflows in the low-mass ( M * ≲ 10 9.5 M ⊙ ), high-redshift ( z > 3) regime. We also find that the outflow velocities generally remain below the host halo escape velocities, consistent with a galactic fountain scenario. The consistency of the stellar mass outflow equivalent width relation across z ∼ 2–6 suggests a persistent, unevolving feedback mechanism governing the baryon cycle toward cosmic dawn.

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Cite This Study

Lyu et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69b3ac7002a1e69014cce1a9https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ae48ee
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