Possible environmental quenching in an interacting little red dot pair at $z\sim7$

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Mérida, Rosa M., Gaspar, Gaia, Sawicki, Marcin, Asada, Yoshihisa, Desprez, Guillaume, Rihtaršič, Gregor, Antwi-Danso, Jacqueline, Tripodi, Roberta, Willott, Chris J., Bradač, Maruša, Brammer, Gabriel B., Iyer, Kartheik G., Martis, Nicholas S., Muzzin, Adam, Noirot, Gaël, Sarrouh, Ghassan T. E., Markov, Vladan
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Mérida, Rosa M.
Gaspar, Gaia
Sawicki, Marcin
Asada, Yoshihisa
Desprez, Guillaume
Rihtaršič, Gregor
Antwi-Danso, Jacqueline
Tripodi, Roberta
Willott, Chris J.
Bradač, Maruša
Brammer, Gabriel B.
Iyer, Kartheik G.
Martis, Nicholas S.
Muzzin, Adam
Noirot, Gaël
Sarrouh, Ghassan T. E.
Markov, Vladan
author_facet Mérida, Rosa M.
Gaspar, Gaia
Sawicki, Marcin
Asada, Yoshihisa
Desprez, Guillaume
Rihtaršič, Gregor
Antwi-Danso, Jacqueline
Tripodi, Roberta
Willott, Chris J.
Bradač, Maruša
Brammer, Gabriel B.
Iyer, Kartheik G.
Martis, Nicholas S.
Muzzin, Adam
Noirot, Gaël
Sarrouh, Ghassan T. E.
Markov, Vladan
contents We report the discovery of a $z\sim7$ group of galaxies that contains two little red dots (LRDs) just 3.3 kpc apart, along with three potential satellite galaxies, as part of the Canadian NIRISS Unbiased Cluster Survey (CANUCS). The spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of this LRD pair show evidence of a Balmer break, consistent with a recent ($\sim 100$ Myr) quenching of star formation. In contrast, the satellites are compatible with a recent-onset ($\sim 100$ Myr), ongoing burst of star formation. LRD1's SED is consistent with a dust-free active galactic nucleus (AGN) being the source of the UV excess in the galaxy. The optical continuum would be powered by the emission from an obscured post-starburst and the AGN at a subdominant level. LRD2's SED is more ambiguous, but it could also be indicative of a dust-free AGN. In this scenario, these LRDs would be massive ($M_\star\sim10^{10}\,M_\odot$) and dusty (A(V) $>1$ mag) and the three satellites would be lower-mass objects ($M_\star\sim10^{8-9}\,M_\odot$) subject to low dust attenuations. The proximity of the two LRDs suggests that their interaction is responsible for their recent star formation histories, which can be interpreted as environmental bursting and quenching in the epoch of reionization.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2501_17925
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Possible environmental quenching in an interacting little red dot pair at $z\sim7$
Mérida, Rosa M.
Gaspar, Gaia
Sawicki, Marcin
Asada, Yoshihisa
Desprez, Guillaume
Rihtaršič, Gregor
Antwi-Danso, Jacqueline
Tripodi, Roberta
Willott, Chris J.
Bradač, Maruša
Brammer, Gabriel B.
Iyer, Kartheik G.
Martis, Nicholas S.
Muzzin, Adam
Noirot, Gaël
Sarrouh, Ghassan T. E.
Markov, Vladan
Astrophysics of Galaxies
We report the discovery of a $z\sim7$ group of galaxies that contains two little red dots (LRDs) just 3.3 kpc apart, along with three potential satellite galaxies, as part of the Canadian NIRISS Unbiased Cluster Survey (CANUCS). The spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of this LRD pair show evidence of a Balmer break, consistent with a recent ($\sim 100$ Myr) quenching of star formation. In contrast, the satellites are compatible with a recent-onset ($\sim 100$ Myr), ongoing burst of star formation. LRD1's SED is consistent with a dust-free active galactic nucleus (AGN) being the source of the UV excess in the galaxy. The optical continuum would be powered by the emission from an obscured post-starburst and the AGN at a subdominant level. LRD2's SED is more ambiguous, but it could also be indicative of a dust-free AGN. In this scenario, these LRDs would be massive ($M_\star\sim10^{10}\,M_\odot$) and dusty (A(V) $>1$ mag) and the three satellites would be lower-mass objects ($M_\star\sim10^{8-9}\,M_\odot$) subject to low dust attenuations. The proximity of the two LRDs suggests that their interaction is responsible for their recent star formation histories, which can be interpreted as environmental bursting and quenching in the epoch of reionization.
title Possible environmental quenching in an interacting little red dot pair at $z\sim7$
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.17925