Filling the Gap in Cluster Evolution: JWST's Glimpse into a Young, Star-Forming Cluster at Cosmic Noon
Abstract
We present a detailed study of HUDFJ0332.4-2746.6 (HUDF46), a overdensity in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, previously identified with HST as a proto-cluster. JWST/NIRISS spectroscopy expands its confirmed membership from 18 to 37 galaxies, while deep HST/ACS, JWST/NIRCam, and JWST/MIRI imaging provide a comprehensive multiwavelength view from the rest-frame UV to the mid-infrared. This dataset probes the population across three dex in stellar mass (), delivering the first direct view of a young cluster down to such low- at . Assuming virialization, we derive a velocity dispersion of and a halo mass of , in agreement with X-ray constraints from deep {\it Chandra} data. Despite residing in a massive halo likely in the hot-halo regime, the population is overwhelmingly star-forming, with no established red sequence and no extended X-ray emission from a hot intracluster medium. HUDF46 members have stellar and structural properties nearly indistinguishable from coeval field galaxies, and the structure hosts only one AGN candidate, found in its brightest galaxy, which lies at the cluster center. Overall, HUDF46 appears to be in a transitional phase prior to the onset of environmental quenching, making its galaxy population a key benchmark for tracing the processes that will later build a passive population and shape the assembly of massive clusters at later cosmic times.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2602.24162,
title = {Filling the Gap in Cluster Evolution: JWST's Glimpse into a Young, Star-Forming Cluster at Cosmic Noon},
author = {Pierluigi Rinaldi and Stacey Alberts and Christopher N. A. Willmer and Courtney Carreira and Christina C. Williams and Gaël Noirot and Carys J. E. Gilbert and Andrew J. Bunker and William M. Baker and Luigi Barchiesi and Zhiyuan Ji and Jianwei Lyu and Sandro Tacchella and Zihao Wu and Yongda Zhu},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2602.24162},
year = {2026}
}
Comments
25 pages; 13 figures, 1 Table; Submitted to ApJ. Comments are welcome!