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Galaxies SIG Seminar: Tracing Turbulence in Jellyfish Galaxy Tails

3 March 2026

Galaxies SIG about Galaxies SIG Seminar: Tracing Turbulence in Jellyfish Galaxy Tails

Wednesday March 4th, 2026, 1:00pm ET

Tracing Turbulence in Jellyfish Galaxy Tails

Speaker

Yuan Li | UMass

Abstract

Jellyfish galaxies, found in the outskirts of galaxy clusters, exhibit extended tails of gas stripped away by ram pressure from the intracluster medium (ICM), giving rise to their distinctive “jellyfish” appearance. These galaxies offer unique laboratories to study environmental effects on star formation and galaxy evolution. In this talk, I will present an analysis of the kinematics of the Halpha tail of the jellyfish galaxy ESO137−001, observed with the MUSE instrument. Our study reveals that the multi-phase filaments within the tail exhibit velocity statistics consistent with turbulent flows. The change in the level of turbulence along the tail is consistent with the growth and saturation of Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities, driven by the shear between the stripped gas and the surrounding ICM. The electron mean free path in cluster outskirts is comparable to the size of individual galaxies. If the cool filaments serve as effective tracers of the hot ICM, then detecting turbulence on scales below the electron mean free path provides compelling evidence that isotropic viscosity in the hot plasma is strongly suppressed. This finding has significant implications for our understanding of plasma transport processes in galaxy cluster environments.

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Angled from the upper left corner to the lower right corner is a cone-shaped orange-red cloud known as Herbig-Haro 49/50. This feature takes up about three-fourths of the length of this angle. The upper left end of this feature has a translucent, rounded end. The conical feature widens slightly from the rounded end at the upper right down to the lower right. Along the cone there are additional rounded edges, like edges of a wave, and intricate foamy-like details, as well as a clearer view of the black background of space. In the upper left, overlapping with the rounded end of Herbig-Haro 49/50, is a background spiral galaxy with a concentrated blue center that fades outward to blend with red spiral arms. The background of space is speckled with some white stars and smaller, more numerous, fainter white galaxies throughout.