Is the Flattening of Elliptical Galaxies Necessarily Due to Rotation?

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Abstract
There is as yet no conclusive observational evidence to indicate at what redshift zf the first massive galaxies formed. In particular we do not know whether the galaxy formation process was dissipative. If zf < 10 the formation of galaxies is likely to have involved the formation of pancakes of stars. This paper investigates the possibility that elliptical galaxies formed by the violent relaxation of such sheets of stars. A numerical simulation of the relaxation process indicates that the final equilibrium configuration of stars will be markedly flattened whether or not the pancake of stars possessed rotation. The form of the equilibrium configuration which is formed in this way from a pancake appears to be consistent with a Hubble luminosity profile. The model is also consistent with the only published rotation curve of an elliptical galaxy in that it suggests that rotation may not always be dynamically important for such elliptical galaxies.

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