The life of a cluster galaxy is a violent one. As galaxy clusters form and evolve, their member galaxies frequently collide and interact both with other galaxies and galaxy groups, and with the cluster as a whole. Over time, gravitational tides strip stars from their host galaxies and spread them throughout the cluster to form a diffuse "intracluster light" (ICL). Using numerical simulations, we can explore the formation and structure of the ICL, and use it as a tracer of the dynamical evolution of galaxy clusters. We are also using deep wide-field imaging to search for this extremely faint light in nearby galaxy clusters, and have discovered a remarkably complex web of ICL in the Virgo cluster.

Chris Mihos