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Updated: Jul 23, 2026
07:46
Setting Limits on Supersymmetry Using Simplified Models
Published on: November 15, 2013
Gas loss in simulated galaxies as they fall into clusters
Renyue Cen1, Ana Roxana Pop1, Neta A Bahcall2
1Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544.
Summary
Galaxies migrating into galaxy clusters lose cold gas as they approach the dense core. This gas stripping occurs rapidly, within one orbital trip, even before reaching the cluster
Area of Science:
- Cosmology
- Galaxy Formation and Evolution
- Astrophysics
Background:
- Galaxy clusters are the largest gravitationally bound structures in the Universe.
- Understanding galaxy gas content is crucial for galaxy evolution models.
- The cluster environment significantly impacts galaxy properties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanisms of cold gas loss in galaxies transitioning from field to cluster environments.
- To determine the spatial extent of environmental influence on galaxy gas fraction.
- To analyze the relationship between galaxy orbits and gas stripping within clusters.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing high-resolution cosmological hydrodynamic galaxy formation simulations.
- Analyzing galaxy gas content as a function of cluster-centric radius.
- Examining galaxy orbital trajectories (inward and outward) at the cluster virial radius.
Main Results:
- The fraction of gas-rich galaxies remains constant beyond three cluster virial radii (field population).
- A steady decline in gas-rich galaxies is observed within three cluster virial radii, reaching <10% near the center.
- Galaxies infalling at the cluster virial radius are predominantly gas-rich and on near-radial orbits.
- Galaxies moving outward at the cluster virial radius are almost entirely gas-poor.
Conclusions:
- Galaxies begin to lose cold gas well beyond the virial radius due to the cluster environment.
- Infalling galaxies lose their cold gas within a single radial round-trip.
- The cluster environment is highly efficient at removing cold gas from galaxies.
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