NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010A-0482
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010A-0482 |
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PI: Christopher J. Miller, CTIO/NOAO, cmiller@noao.edu
Address: Science Data Management, Observatorio de AURA, La Serena, Chile
CoI: Percy Gomez, Gemini South Observatory
CoI: Neal Miller, Univ. of Maryland
CoI: Glenn Morrison, CFHT
Title: Near-infrared Survey of the Abell 1882 Super-Group
Abstract: We aim to collect deep near-infrared J,H and K-band imaging of the super-group (or proto-cluster) named Abell 1882. Originally identified as a richness class 3 Abell cluster, X-ray and spectroscopic follow-up showed that Abell 1882 is actually 3 or 4 smaller groups that are co-located within a projected diameter of 3 Mpc. Such super-groups are the ideal environments within which to study the evolution of galaxy properties. We will measure the near-infrared (NIR) luminosity function (LF) to determine whether it steepens at the faint-end, indicating a real increase in the space density of low mass galaxies in this super- group. Abell 1882 is a very high peak in the matter density field and standard CDM predicts there to be a significant population of low-mass dwarf galaxies similar to what is seen in Coma. By using the NIR we minimize issues of recent star-formation and can better trace the halo mass function within Abell 1882. We will apply a new technique to calculate the LF developed by Christlein et al. (2009) which avoids biases due to the background galaxy field. We will compare the Abell 1882 NIR LF to the deep NIR LFs in massive X-ray clusters from the WINGS WFCAM NIR survey (Valentinuzzi et al. 2009) and to the Coma H-band LF (De Propris et al. 1998). By comparing these NIR LFs between massive clusters and the progenitors from which they form, we can surmise the evolutionary history of the environmental processes which acted along the way.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010A-0482 |
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