Galaxy Evolution in Dense Environments
Over time star-forming galaxies transform into passively-evolving red galaxies. These transformations are due to a combination of internal processes, like feedback from an active galactic nucleus, as well as environmental processes. I will review the ways in which the host environment can affect the properties of galaxies and then present some of our recent work on group and cluster galaxies in the local universe. Previous work has found that the properties of satellite galaxies depend on the mass of their host halo. We explore how galaxy quenching depends on the evolutionary state of their host environment as traced by both member dynamics and X-ray properties. I will discuss how these trends can be used to constrain the mechanisms at play in environmentally-driven galaxy evolution and end with some recent work on the properties of optically-identified ram pressure stripped galaxies in low redshift clusters.
