2015ApJ...806...85C -
Astrophys. J., 806, 85 (2015/June-2)
Star formation and relaxation in 379 nearby galaxy clusters.
COHEN S.A., HICKOX R.C. and WEGNER G.A.
Abstract (from CDS):
We investigate the relationship between star formation (SF) and level of relaxation in a sample of 379 galaxy clusters at z < 0.2. We use data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey to measure cluster membership and level of relaxation, and to select star-forming galaxies based on mid-infrared emission detected with the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer. For galaxies with absolute magnitudes Mr< -19.5, we find an inverse correlation between SF fraction and cluster relaxation: as a cluster becomes less relaxed, its SF fraction increases. Furthermore, in general, the subtracted SF fraction in all unrelaxed clusters (0.117±0.003) is higher than that in all relaxed clusters (0.097±0.005). We verify the validity of our SF calculation methods and membership criteria through analysis of previous work. Our results agree with previous findings that a weak correlation exists between cluster SF and dynamical state, possibly because unrelaxed clusters are less evolved relative to relaxed clusters.
Abstract Copyright:
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Journal keyword(s):
galaxies: clusters: general - galaxies: star formation
Simbad objects:
15
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