Five E+A (post-starburst) galaxies as Brightest Cluster Galaxies

Abstract

Brightest Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) are mostly elliptical galaxies and very rarely have prominent star formation. We found that five out of 8,812 BCGs are E+A (i.e. post-starburst) galaxies, having the H$\delta$~absorption line with an equivalent width $>2.5\mathring{A}$ and no distinct emission lines in [O II] and H$\alpha$. The E+A features we identified from the BCGs for the first time are not as significant as those in general galaxies, indicating that historically the star formation were not very violent.

8 pages, 2 figures and 1 table; A Brief Report in SCIENCE CHINA Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy (ScChG)