We present an analysis of the levels and evolution of star formation activity in a representative sample of 30 massive galaxy clusters at 0.15 < z < 0.30 from the Local Cluster Substructure Survey, ...combining wide-field Spitzer/MIPS 24 mum data with extensive spectroscopy of cluster members. The specific SFRs of massive (M > ~ 10 super(10) M sub(middot in circle)) star-forming cluster galaxies within r sub(200) are found to be systematically ~28% lower than their counterparts in the field at fixed stellar mass and redshift, a difference significant at the 8.7sigma level. This is the unambiguous signature of star formation in most (and possibly all) massive star-forming galaxies being slowly quenched upon accretion into massive clusters, their star formation rates (SFRs) declining exponentially on quenching timescales in the range 0.7-2.0 Gyr. We measure the mid-infrared Butcher-Oemler effect over the redshift range 0.0-0.4, finding rapid evolution in the fraction (functionof sub(SF)) of massive (M sub(K) < - 23.1) cluster galaxies within r sub(200) with SFRs > 3 M sub(middot in circle) yr super(-1), of the form functionof sub(SF) alpha (1 + z) super(7.6 + or - 1.1). We dissect the origins of the Butcher-Oemler effect, revealing it to be due to the combination of a ~3 x decline in the mean specific SFRs of star-forming cluster galaxies since z ~ 0.3 with a ~1.5 x decrease in number density. Two-thirds of this reduction in the specific SFRs of star-forming cluster galaxies is due to the steady cosmic decline in the specific SFRs among those field galaxies accreted into the clusters. The remaining one-third reflects an accelerated decline in the star formation activity of galaxies within clusters. The slow quenching of star formation in cluster galaxies is consistent with a gradual shut down of star formation in infalling spiral galaxies as they interact with the intracluster medium via ram-pressure stripping or starvation mechanisms. The observed sharp decline in star formation activity among cluster galaxies since z ~ 0.4 likely reflects the increased susceptibility of low-redshift spiral galaxies to gas removal mechanisms as their gas surface densities decrease with time. We find no evidence for the build-up of cluster S0 bulges via major nuclear starburst episodes.
We study the case of a bright (L > L
) barred spiral galaxy from the rich cluster A3558 in the Shapley supercluster core (z = 0.05) undergoing ram-pressure stripping. Integral-field spectroscopy with ...Wide Field Spectrograph (WiFeS) at the 2.3-m Australian National University telescope, complemented by imaging in ultraviolet (GALEX), B and R European Southern Observatory (ESO) 2.2-m WFI, Hα (Magellan), K (United Kingdom Infrared Telescope), 24 and 70 μm (Spitzer), allows us to reveal the impact of ram pressure on the interstellar medium. With these data we study in detail the kinematics and the physical conditions of the ionized gas and the properties of the stellar populations. We observe one-sided extraplanar ionized gas along the full extent of the galaxy disc, extending ∼13 kpc in projection from it. Narrow-band Hα imaging resolves this outflow into a complex of knots and filaments, similar to those seen in other cluster galaxies undergoing ram-pressure stripping. The gas velocity field is complex with the extraplanar gas showing signature of rotation, while the stellar velocity field is regular and the K-band image shows a symmetric stellar distribution. We use line-ratio diagnostics to ascertain the origin of the observed emission. In all parts of the galaxy, we find a significant contribution from shock excitation, as well as emission powered by star formation. Shock-ionized gas is associated with the turbulent gas outflow and highly attenuated by dust (A
v
= 1.5-2.3 mag). All these findings cover the whole phenomenology of early-stage ram-pressure stripping. Intense, highly obscured star formation is taking place in the nucleus, probably related to the bar, and in a region 12 kpc south-west (SW) from the centre. These two regions account for half of the total star formation in the galaxy, which overall amounts to 7.2 ± 2.2 M yr−1. In the SW region we identify a starburst characterized by a ∼5× increase in the star formation rate over the last ∼100 Myr, possibly related to the compression of the interstellar gas by the ram pressure. The scenario suggested by the observations is supported and refined by ad hoc N-body/hydrodynamical simulations which identify a rather narrow temporal range for the onset of ram-pressure stripping around t ∼ 60 Myr ago, and an angle between the galaxy rotation axis and the intracluster medium wind of ∼45°. The ram pressure is therefore acting at an intermediate angle between face-on and edge-on. Taking into account that the galaxy is found ∼1 Mpc from the cluster centre in a relatively low density region, this study shows that ram-pressure stripping still acts efficiently on massive galaxies well outside the cluster cores, as also recently observed in the Virgo cluster.
We present two new examples of galaxies undergoing transformation in the Shapley supercluster core. These low-mass (
$\mathcal {M}_{\star }\sim 0.4\text{--}1\times 10^{10}$
M⊙) galaxies are members ...of the two clusters SC 1329−313 (z ∼ 0.045) and SC 1327−312 (z ∼ 0.049). Integral-field spectroscopy complemented by imaging in the ugriK bands and in Hα narrow band is used to disentangle the effects of tidal interaction (TI) and ram-pressure stripping (RPS). In both galaxies, SOS 61086 and SOS 90630, we observe one-sided extraplanar ionized gas extending respectively ∼30 and ∼41 kpc in projection from their discs. The galaxies' gaseous discs are truncated, and the kinematics of the stellar and gas components are decoupled, supporting the RPS scenario. The emission of the ionized gas extends in the direction of a possible companion for both galaxies suggesting a TI. The overall gas velocity field of SOS 61086 is reproduced by ad hoc N-body/hydrodynamical simulations of RPS acting almost face-on and starting ∼250 Myr ago, consistent with the age of the young stellar populations. A link between the observed gas stripping and the cluster–cluster interaction experienced by SC 1329−313 and A3562 is suggested. Simulations of ram pressure acting almost edge-on are able to fully reproduce the gas velocity field of SOS 90630, but cannot at the same time reproduce the extended tail of outflowing gas. This suggests that an additional disturbance from a TI is required. This study adds a piece of evidence that RPS may take place in different environments with different impacts and witnesses the possible effect of cluster–cluster merger on RPS.
We study the mid-infrared (MIR) properties of galaxies in 30 massive galaxy clusters at 0.02 <= z <= 0.40, using panoramic Spitzer/MIPS 24 Delta *mm and near-infrared data, including 27 new ...observations from the LoCuSS and ACCESS surveys. This is the largest sample of clusters to date with such high-quality and uniform MIR data covering not only the cluster cores, but extending into the infall regions. We use these data to revisit the so-called Butcher-Oemler (BO) effect, measuring the fraction of massive infrared luminous galaxies (K < K + 1.5, L IR > 5 X 1010 L ) within r 200, finding a steady increase in the fraction with redshift from ~3% at z = 0.02 to ~10% by z = 0.30, and an rms cluster-to-cluster scatter about this trend of 0.03. The best-fit redshift evolution model of the form f SF (1 + z) n has n = 5.7+2.1 -1.8, which is stronger redshift evolution than that of L IR in both clusters and the field. We find that, statistically, this excess is associated with galaxies found at large cluster-centric radii, specifically r 500 < r < r 200, implying that the MIR BO effect can be explained by a combination of both the global decline in star formation in the universe since z ~ 1 and enhanced star formation in the infall regions of clusters at intermediate redshifts. This picture is supported by a simple infall model based on the Millennium Simulation semianalytic galaxy catalogs, whereby star formation in infalling galaxies is instantaneously quenched upon their first passage through the cluster, in that the observed radial trends of f SF trace those inferred from the simulations. The observed f SF values, however, lie systematically above the predictions, suggesting an overall excess of star formation, either due to triggering by environmental processes, or a gradual quenching. We also find that f SF does not depend on simple indicators of the dynamical state of clusters, including the offset between the brightest cluster galaxy and the peak of the X-ray emission. This is consistent with the picture described above in that most new star formation in clusters occurs in the infall regions, and is thus not sensitive to the details of cluster-cluster mergers in the core regions.
Context. The upcoming new generation of optical spectrographs on four-meter-class telescopes, with their huge multiplexing capabilities, excellent spectral resolution, and unprecedented wavelength ...coverage, will provide invaluable information for reconstructing the history of star formation in individual galaxies up to redshifts of about 0.7. Aims. We aim at defining simple but robust and meaningful physical parameters that can be used to trace the coexistence of widely diverse stellar components: younger stellar populations superimposed on the bulk of older ones. Methods. We produced spectra of galaxies closely mimicking data from the forthcoming Stellar Populations at intermediate redshifts Survey (StePS), a survey that uses the WEAVE spectrograph on the William Herschel Telescope. First, we assessed our ability to reliably measure both ultraviolet and optical spectral indices in galaxies of different spectral types for typically expected signal-to-noise ratios. We then analyzed such mock spectra with a Bayesian approach, deriving the probability density function of r- and u-band light-weighted ages as well as of their difference. Results. We find that the ultraviolet indices significantly narrow the uncertainties in estimating the r- and u-band light-weighted ages and their difference in individual galaxies. These diagnostics, robustly retrievable for large galaxy samples even when observed at moderate signal-to-noise ratios, allow us to identify secondary episodes of star formation up to an age of ∼0.1 Gyr for stellar populations older than ∼1.5 Gyr, pushing up to an age of ∼1 Gyr for stellar populations older than ∼5 Gyr. Conclusions. The difference between r-band and u-band light-weighted ages is shown to be a powerful diagnostic to characterize and constrain extended star-formation histories and the presence of young stellar populations on top of older ones. This parameter can be used to explore the interplay between different galaxy star-formation histories and physical parameters such as galaxy mass, size, morphology, and environment.
We present panoramic Spitzer/MIPS mid- and far-infrared (MIR/FIR) and GALEX ultraviolet imaging of the most massive and dynamically active system in the local Universe, the Shapley supercluster at z= ...0.048, covering the five clusters that make up the supercluster core. We combine these data with existing spectroscopic data from 814 confirmed supercluster members to produce the first study of a local rich cluster including both ultraviolet and infrared luminosity functions (LFs). This joint analysis allows us to produce a complete census of star formation (both obscured and unobscured), extending down to star formation rates (SFRs) ∼0.02-0.05 M⊙ yr−1, and quantify the level of obscuration of star formation among cluster galaxies, providing a local benchmark for comparison to ongoing and future studies of cluster galaxies at higher redshifts with Spitzer and Herschel. The GALEX near-ultraviolet (NUV) and far-ultraviolet (FUV) luminosity functions (LFs) obtained have steeper faint-end slopes than the local field population, due largely to the contribution of massive, quiescent galaxies at M
FUV≳−16. The 24- and 70-μm galaxy LFs for the Shapley supercluster instead have shapes fully consistent with those obtained for the Coma cluster and for the local field galaxy population. This apparent lack of environmental dependence for the shape of the FIR luminosity function suggests that the bulk of the star-forming galaxies that make up the observed cluster infrared LF have been recently accreted from the field and have yet to have their star formation activity significantly affected by the cluster environment. We estimate a global SFR of 327 M⊙ yr−1 over the whole supercluster core, of which just ∼20 per cent is visible directly in the ultraviolet continuum and ∼80 per cent is reprocessed by dust and emitted in the infrared. The level of obscuration (L
IR/L
FUV) in star-forming galaxies is seen to increase linearly with LK
over 2 orders of magnitude in stellar mass.
We present an analysis of star formation and nuclear activity in galaxies as a function of both luminosity and environment in the fourth data release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Using a sample ...of 27 753 galaxies in the redshift range 0.005 < z < 0.037 that is ≳90 per cent complete to Mr=−18.0, we find that the Hα equivalent width, EW(Hα), distribution is strongly bimodal, allowing galaxies to be robustly separated into passively evolving and star-forming populations about a value EW(Hα) = 2Å. In high-density regions ∼70 per cent of galaxies are passively evolving independent of luminosity. In the rarefied field, however, the fraction of passively evolving galaxies is a strong function of luminosity, dropping from 50 per cent for Mr≲−21 to zero by Mr∼−18. Indeed for the lowest luminosity range covered (−18 < Mr < −16) none of the ∼600 galaxies in the lowest-density quartile is passively evolving. The few passively evolving dwarf galaxies in field regions appear as satellites to bright (≳L*) galaxies. We find a systematic reduction of ∼30 per cent in the Hα emission from dwarf (−19 < Mr < −18) star-forming galaxies in high-density regions with respect to field values, implying that the bulk of star-forming dwarf galaxies in groups and clusters are currently in the process of being slowly transformed into passive galaxies. The fraction of galaxies with the optical signatures of an active galactic nucleus (AGN) decreases steadily from ∼50 per cent at Mr∼−21 to ∼0 per cent by Mr∼−18 closely mirroring the luminosity dependence of the passive galaxy fraction in low-density environments. This result reflects the increasing importance of AGN feedback with galaxy mass for their evolution, such that the star formation histories of massive galaxies are primarily determined by their past merger history. In contrast, the complete absence of passively evolving dwarf galaxies more than ∼2 virial radii from the nearest massive halo (i.e. cluster, group or massive galaxy) indicates that internal processes, such as merging, AGN feedback or gas consumption through star formation, are not responsible for terminating star formation in dwarf galaxies. Instead the evolution of dwarf galaxies is primarily driven by the mass of their host halo, probably through the combined effects of tidal forces and ram-pressure stripping.
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