Related papers: Brightest Cluster Galaxy Alignments in Merging Clu…
We have identified perhaps the largest major galaxy merger ever seen. While analysing Spitzer IRAC images of CL0958+4702, an X-ray selected cluster at z=0.39, we discovered an unusual plume of stars extending $\gtrsim$110 kpc outward from…
Brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) are usually quiescent, but many exhibit star formation. Here we exploit the opportunity provided by rest-frame UV imaging of galaxy clusters in the CLASH (Cluster Lensing and Supernovae with Hubble)…
Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet (UV) images of nine starburst galaxies reveal them to be highly irregular, even after excluding compact sources (clusters and resolved stars). Most (7/9) are found to have a similar intrinsic effective…
We present new VLBI observations at 5 GHz of a complete sample of Brightest Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) in nearby Abell Clusters (distance class <3). Combined with data from the literature, this provides parsec-scale information for 34 BCGs.…
We analyse a sample of about 2000 galaxies in 40 regular clusters, to look for evidence of segregation with respect to galaxy luminosities and morphological types. We find evidence of luminosity segregation for galaxies brighter than $M_R <…
Identification of high redshift clusters is important for studies of cosmology and cluster evolution. Using photometric redshifts of galaxies, we identify 631 clusters from the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) Wide field, 202 clusters…
Using a sample of 123 X-ray clusters and groups drawn from the XMM-Cluster Survey first data release, we investigate the interplay between the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG), its black hole, and the intra-cluster/group medium (ICM). It…
The current consensus on the formation and evolution of the brightest cluster galaxies is that their stellar mass forms early ($z \gtrsim 4$) in separate galaxies that then eventually assemble the main structure at late times ($z \lesssim…
A study of the luminosity function of 36 Abell clusters of galaxies has been carried out using photographic plates obtained with the Palomar 1.2 m Schmidt telescope. The relation between the magnitude M_1 of the brightest cluster member and…
We examine the statistical properties of the brightest group galaxies (BGGs) using a complete spectroscopic sample of groups/clusters of galaxies selected from the Data Release 7 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We test whether BGGs and…
We study the star-formation activity in a sample of $\sim$ 56,000 brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) at $0.05 < z < 0.42$ using optical and infra-red data from SDSS and WISE. We estimate stellar masses and star-formation rates (SFR) through…
We apply a friends-of-friends (FoF) algorithm to identify galaxy clusters and we use the catalog to explore the evolutionary synergy between BCGs and their host clusters. We base the cluster catalog on the dense HectoMAP redshift survey…
We investigate the formation channels of the intracluster light (ICL) and the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) in clusters at $z=0$. For this, we perform multi-resolution cosmological N-body simulations using the "Galaxy Replacement…
Although it is generally accepted that massive galaxies form in a two-phased fashion, beginning with a rapid mass buildup through intense starburst activities, followed by primarily dry mergers that mainly deposit stellar mass at outskirts,…
Galaxy clusters are the largest virialized structures in the observable Universe. The knowledge of their properties provides many useful astrophysical and cosmological information. Our aim is to derive the luminosity and stellar mass…
Brightest cluster galaxies (BCG) are today passive and very massive galaxies at the center of their clusters, still accreting mass through swallowing companions, and flows of cold gas, regulated by radio-mode active galactic nucleus (AGN)…
The K-band Hubble diagram for a sample of brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) in the redshift range 0<z<1 shows a very small scatter (0.3 magnitudes r.m.s). The BCGs exhibit very little luminosity evolution in this redshift range: if q_0=0.0…
Starburst galaxies are often found to be the result of galaxy mergers. As a result, galaxy mergers are often believed to lie above the galaxy main sequence: the tight correlation between stellar mass and star formation rate. Here, we aim to…
Clusters of galaxies are the most recently assembled, massive, bound structures in the Universe. As predicted by General Relativity, given their masses, clusters strongly deform space-time in their vicinity. Clusters act as some of the most…
We investigate the near infrared evolution of brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) from a sample of rich galaxy clusters since z=1. By employing an X-ray selection of Lx>1e44 erg s-1 we limit environmental effects by selecting BCGs in…