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Description
The mergers of galaxy clusters are the most energetic events in the universe after the Big Bang. An ever increasing fraction of local clusters exhibit signs of recent or past mergers. Our goal is to probe how these mergers affect the evolution and content of their member galaxies. We specifically aim to answer the following questions: Is the quenching of star formation in merging clusters enhanced when compared with relaxed clusters? Is the quenching accompanied by a (short lived) burst of star formation? We obtained optical spectroscopy of $>400$ galaxies in the field of the merging cluster Abell 520. We combine these observations with archival data to get a comprehensive picture of the state of star formation in the members of this merging cluster. Finally, we compare these observations with a control sample of 10 non-merging clusters at the same redshift from The Arizona Cluster Redshift Survey (ACReS). We split the member galaxies in passive, star forming or recently quenched depending on their spectra. The core of the merger shows a decreased fraction of star-forming galaxies compared to clusters in the non-merging sample. This region, dominated by passive galaxies, is extended along the axis of the merger. We find evidence of rapid quenching of the galaxies during the core passage with no signs of a star burst on the time scales of the merger. Additionally, we report the tentative discovery of an infalling group along the main filament feeding the merger, currently at ~2.5Mpc from the merger centre. This group contains a high fraction of star forming galaxies as well as ~2/3 of all the recently quenched galaxies in our survey.
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