arXiv subjects

Pratik Dabhade

Publications and source records attributed to Pratik Dabhade.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2023

RAD@home discovery of a one-sided radio jet hitting the companion galaxy

Minkowski's Object and 'Death Star galaxy' are two of the famous cases of rare instances when a radio jet has been observed to directly hit a neighbouring galaxy. RAD12, the RAD@home citizen science discovery with GMRT being presented here, is not only a new system being added to nearly half a dozen rare cases known so far but also the first case where the neighbouring galaxy is not a minor or dwarf companion but a galaxy bigger than the host of the radio jet. Additionally, the jet appears to be one-sided and the jet after interaction completely stops and forms a bubble inflating laterally which is unlike previous cases of minor deviation or loss of collimation. Since the nature of radio jet-ISM coupling is poorly understood so far, more discovery of objects like RAD12 will be important to the understanding of galaxy evolution through merger and AGN feedback.

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arXiv2023

Measuring the giant radio galaxy length distribution with the LoTSS

Radio galaxies are luminous structures created by the jets of supermassive black holes, and consist of atomic nuclei, relativistic electrons, and magnetic fields. In exceptional cases, radio galaxies attain cosmological, megaparsec extents - and thus turn into giants. Giants embody the most extreme known mechanism through which galaxies can impact the Cosmic Web around them. The triggers of giant growth remain a mystery. Excitingly, new sensitive low-frequency sky surveys hold promise to change this situation. In this work, we perform a precision measurement of the distribution of giant growth's central dynamical quantity: total length. We first construct a statistical geometric framework for radio galaxies that is both rigorous and practical. We then search the LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey for giants, discovering 2060 previously unknown specimina: more than have been found in all preceding literature combined. Spectacular discoveries include the longest giant hosted by an elliptical galaxy, the longest giant hosted by a spiral galaxy, and 13 giants with an angular length larger than that of the full Moon. By combining theory and observations - and carefully forward modelling selection effects - we infer that giant radio galaxy lengths are well described by a Pareto distribution with tail index $-3.5 \pm 0.5$. This finding is a new observational constraint for models and simulations of radio galaxy growth. In addition, for the first time, we determine the comoving number density of giants, $5 \pm 2\ (100\ \mathrm{Mpc})^{-3}$, and the volume-filling fraction of giant radio galaxy lobes in clusters and filaments, $5\substack{+8\\-2}\cdot 10^{-6}$. We conclude that giants are truly rare - not only from an observational perspective, but also from a cosmological one. At any moment in time, most clusters and filaments - the building blocks of the modern Cosmic Web - do not harbour giants.

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arXiv2023

Decoding the giant extragalactic radio sources

Giant radio sources (GRSs) defined to be > 0.7 Mpc are the largest single objects in the Universe and can be associated with both galaxies (GRGs) and quasars (GRQs). They are important for understanding the evolution of radio galaxies and quasars whose sizes range from pc to Mpc scales and are also valuable probes of their environment. These radio-loud active galactic nuclei (RLAGN) interact with the interstellar medium of the host galaxy on small scales and the large-scale intracluster or intergalactic medium for the GRSs. With several new and sensitive surveys over the last few years, the number of known GRSs has increased many fold which has led a resurgence of interest in the field. This review article summarises our current understanding of these sources based on nearly five decades of research and discusses the importance of the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) in addressing some of the outstanding questions.

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arXiv2022

Barbell-shaped giant radio galaxy with ~100 kpc kink in the jet

We present for the first time a study of peculiar giant radio galaxy (GRG) J223301+131502 using deep multi-frequency radio observations from GMRT (323, 612, and 1300 MHz) and LOFAR (144 MHz) along with optical spectroscopic observations with the WHT~4.2m optical telescope. Our observations have firmly established its redshift of 0.09956 and unveiled its exceptional jet structure extending more than $\sim$ 200 kpc leading to a peculiar kink structure of $\sim$ 100 kpc. We measure the overall size of this GRG to be $\sim$ 1.83 Mpc; it exhibits lobes without any prominent hotspots and closely resembles a barbell. Our deep low-frequency radio maps clearly reveal the steep-spectrum diffuse emission from the lobes of the GRG. The magnetic field strength of $\sim$ 5 $μ$G and spectral ages between about 110 to 200 mega years for the radio lobes were estimated using radio data from LOFAR 144 MHz observations and GMRT 323 and 612 MHz observations. We discuss the possible causes leading to the formation of the observed kink feature for the GRG, which includes precession of the jet axis, development of instabilities and magnetic reconnection. Despite its enormous size, the Barbell GRG is found to be residing in a low-mass (M$_{200} \sim 10^{14}$ $\rm M_{\odot}$) galaxy cluster. This GRG with two-sided large-scale jets with a kink and diffuse outer lobes residing in a cluster environment provides an opportunity to explore the structure and growth of GRGs in different environments.

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arXiv2022

RAD@home citizen science discovery of an AGN spewing a large unipolar radio bubble onto its merging companion galaxy

AGN feedback during galaxy merger has been the most favoured model to explain black hole-galaxy co-evolution. However, how the AGN-driven jet/wind/radiation is coupled with the gas of the merging galaxies, which leads to positive feedback, momentarily enhanced star formation, and subsequently negative feedback, a decline in star formation, is poorly understood. Only a few cases are known where the jet and companion galaxy interaction leads to minor off-axis distortions in the jets and enhanced star formation in the gas-rich minor companions. Here, we briefly report one extraordinary case, RAD12, discovered by RAD@home citizen science collaboratory, where for the first time a radio jet-driven bubble ~137 kpc is showing a symmetric reflection after hitting the incoming galaxy which is not a gas-rich minor but a gas-poor early-type galaxy in a major merger. Surprisingly, neither positive feedback nor any radio lobe on the counter jet side, if any, is detected. It is puzzling if RAD12 is a genuine one-sided jet or a case of radio lobe trapped, compressed and re-accelerated by shocks during the merger. This is the first imaging study of RAD12 presenting follow-up with the GMRT, archival MeerKAT radio data and CFHT optical data.

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arXiv2022

X-shaped radio galaxy 3C 223.1: A 'double boomerang' with an anomalous spectral gradient

A comparison of the recent LOFAR 144 MHz map of the radio source 3C 223.1 (J094124.028+394441.95) with the VLA maps at 4.9 GHz and 8.3 GHz that we built based on archival data, establishes this X-shaped radio galaxy (XRG) as a singularly robust case where the 'wings' exhibit a distinctly flatter radio spectrum than the primary lobes. The details of its anomalous spectral gradient are unravelled here with unprecedented precision. We also highlight the 'double boomerang' type radio morphology of this XRG. It appears plausible that the peculiar spectral gradient in this XRG is owed to particle acceleration associated with the rebounding of the collimated backflows of synchrotron plasma streaming through its two primary lobes, as they impinge upon and encounter the magnetic tension in the prominent dusty disk of the elliptical galaxy hosting this XRG. We also draw attention to an intriguing new morphological peculiarity among XRGs, namely, a lateral offset observed between the (parallel) axes of the two primary radio lobes.

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arXiv2022

Discovery of X-shaped Morphology of the Giant Radio Galaxy GRG 0503-286

The high surface-brightness sensitivity of the GLEAM survey image of the giant radio galaxy GRG 0503-28 at 70-230 MHz has revealed an inversion-symmetric bending of its two lobes, while maintaining between their bent portions a ~200 kpc wide strip-like radio emission gap. This lends the source the appearance of a mega-sized X-shaped radio galaxy. Identifying the emission gap with the presence of a gaseous layer, probably a WHIM-filled sheet in the cosmic web, we suggest that the layer is the most likely cause of the inversion-symmetric bending of the two radio lobes. Multiple observational manifestations of such gaseous layers are noted. The two lobes of this GRG, known to extend very asymmetrically from the host galaxy, are remarkably symmetric about the emission gap, confirming a curious trend noted earlier for double radio sources of normal dimensions. The anomalous radio spectral gradient reported for the northern lobe of this GRG is not substantiated.

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arXiv2022

The discovery of a radio galaxy of at least 5 Mpc

We discover what is in projection the largest known structure of galactic origin: a giant radio galaxy with a projected proper length of $4.99 \pm 0.04\ \mathrm{Mpc}$. The source, named Alcyoneus, was first identified in low-resolution LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey images from which angularly compact sources had been removed. Being an extreme example in its class, Alcyoneus could shed light on the main mechanisms that drive radio galaxy growth. We find that - beyond geometry - Alcyoneus and its host galaxy appear suspiciously ordinary: the total low-frequency luminosity density, stellar mass and supermassive black hole mass are all lower than, though similar to, those of the medial giant radio galaxy (percentiles $45 \pm 3\%$, $25 \pm 9 \%$ and $23 \pm 11 \%$, respectively). The source resides in a filament of the Cosmic Web, with which it might have significant thermodynamic interaction. At $5 \cdot 10^{-16}\ \mathrm{Pa}$, the pressures in the lobes are the lowest hitherto found, and Alcyoneus therefore represents one of the most promising radio galaxies yet to probe the warm-hot intergalactic medium.

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arXiv2021

SAGAN -- III: New insights into giant radio quasars

Giant radio quasars (GRQs) are radio-loud active galactic nuclei (AGNs), propelling megaparsec-scale jets. In order to understand GRQs and their properties, we have compiled all known GRQs ("the GRQ catalogue"), and a subset of small (size <700 kpc) radio quasars (SRQs) from the literature. In this process, we have found 10 new FR-II GRQs, in the redshift range of 0.66 < z < 1.72, which we include in the GRQ catalogue. Using the above samples, we have carried out a systematic comparative study of GRQs and SRQs, using optical and radio data. Our results show that the GRQs and SRQs statistically have similar spectral index and black hole mass distributions. However, SRQs have higher radio core power, core dominance factor, total radio power, jet kinetic power and Eddington ratio compared to GRQs. On the other hand, when compared to giant radio galaxies (GRGs), GRQs have higher black hole mass and Eddington ratio. The high core dominance factor of SRQs is an indicator of them lying closer to the line of sight than GRQs. We also find a correlation of the accretion disc luminosity with the radio core and jet power of GRQs, which provides evidence for disc-jet coupling. Lastly, we find the distributions of Eddington ratios of GRGs and GRQs to be bi-modal, similar to that found in small radio galaxies (SRGs) and SRQs, which indicate that size is not strongly dependent on the accretion state. Using all of these, we provide a basic model for the growth of SRQs to GRQs.

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arXiv2021

GMRT unveils steep-spectrum antique filaments in the galaxy cluster Abell 725

We present original GMRT radio observations of the galaxy cluster Abell~725, at a redshift of 0.09, along with other archival observations. Our GMRT maps reveal two steep-spectrum diffuse filaments in the cluster, along with a previously reported arc-like structure, and a wide-angle tail (WAT) radio source associated with the Brightest Cluster Galaxy (BCG) at the periphery of the cluster. The bent morphology of the WAT indicates that its jets have been swept back by the dynamic pressure resulting from the motion of the BCG through the surrounding intracluster medium. The BCG associated with the WAT hosts a black hole whose mass we estimate to be 1.4$\pm0.4 \times10^{9} \Msun$. We observe a 2\arcmin (195\,kpc in projection) offset between the BCG and the X-ray centroid of the galaxy cluster, which, along with other dynamic features, indicates the cluster's early stage of evolution. The WAT radio galaxy, the arc and the filaments have spectral indices $α_{612}^{240}= -0.46\pm 0.15$, $-0.8\pm0.3$, and ($-1.13\pm 0.48$, $-1.40\pm 0.50$), respectively. The WAT and the arc are connected structures, while the filaments are detached from them, but are found to be along the trail of the WAT. Based on the morphology of the components, and the progressive steepening of the components from the core of the WAT to the filaments, we propose that this system is a radio galaxy with trailing antique filaments.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2021

uGMRT detection of cluster radio emission in low-mass Planck~SZ clusters

Low-mass ($M_{\rm{500}}<5\times10^{14}{\rm{M_\odot}}$) galaxy clusters have been largely unexplored in radio observations, due to the inadequate sensitivity of existing telescopes. However, the upgraded GMRT (uGMRT) and the Low Frequency ARray (LoFAR), with unprecedented sensitivity at low frequencies, have paved the way to closely study less massive clusters than before. We have started the first large-scale programme to systematically search for diffuse radio emission from low-mass galaxy clusters, chosen from the Planck Sunyaev-Zel'dovich cluster catalogue. We report here the detection of diffuse radio emission from four of the 12 objects in our sample, shortlisted from the inspection of the LoFAR Two Meter Sky Survey (LoTSS-I), followed up by uGMRT Band 3 deep observations. The clusters PSZ2~G089 (Abell~1904) and PSZ2~G111 (Abell~1697) are detected with relic-like emission, while PSZ2~G106 is found to have an intermediate radio halo and PSZ2~G080 (Abell~2018) seems to be a halo-relic system. PSZ2~G089 and PSZ2~G080 are among the lowest-mass clusters discovered with a radio relic and a halo-relic system, respectively. A high ($\sim30\%$) detection rate, with powerful radio emission ($P_{1.4\ {\rm GHz}}\sim10^{23}~{\rm{W~Hz^{-1}}}$) found in most of these objects, opens up prospects of studying radio emission in galaxy clusters over a wider mass range, to much lower-mass systems.

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arXiv2020

SAGAN-II : Molecular gas content of giant radio galaxies

Radio galaxies with jets of relativistic particles are usually hosted by massive elliptical galaxies with active nuclei powered by accretion of interstellar matter onto a supermassive black hole. In some rare cases (<5%), their jets drive the overall structure to sizes larger than 700 kpc, and they are called giant radio galaxies (GRGs). A very small fraction of the population of such radio galaxies contains molecular and atomic gas in the form of rings or discs that can fuel star formation. The origin of this gas is not well known; it has sometimes been associated with a minor merger with a gas-rich disc galaxy (e.g. Centaurus A) or cooling of material from a hot X-ray atmosphere (e.g. cooling flows). The giant radio jets might be the extreme evolution of these objects, and they can teach us about the radio galaxy evolution. We selected 12 targets from a catalogue of 820 GRGs that are likely to be in a gas-accretion and star formation phase. The targets were selected from the mid-infrared to contain heated dust. We report here the results of IRAM-30m observations, the molecular gas content, and the star formation efficiency, and we discuss the origin of the gas and disc morphology. Three out of our 12 targets are detected, and for the others, we report significant upper limits. We combine our three detections and upper limits with four additional detected GRGs from the literature to discuss the results. Most of the GRG targets belong to the main sequence, and a large fraction are in the passive domain. Their star formation efficiency is comparable to normal galaxies, except for two galaxies that are deficient in molecular gas with a short (~200Myr) depletion time, and a quiescent gas-rich giant spiral galaxy. In general, the depletion time is much longer than the lifetime of the giant radio jet.

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arXiv2020

Search and analysis of giant radio galaxies with associated nuclei (SAGAN) -- I : New sample and multi-wavelength studies

We present the first results of a project called SAGAN, which is dedicated solely to the studies of relatively rare megaparsec-scale radio galaxies in the Universe, called giant radio galaxies (GRGs). We have identified 162 new GRGs primarily from the NVSS with sizes ranging from ~0.71 Mpc to 2.82 Mpc in the redshift range of ~0.03 - 0.95, of which 23 are hosted by quasars (giant radio quasars, GRQs). As part of the project SAGAN, we have created a database of all known GRGs, the GRG catalogue, from the literature (including our new sample); it includes 820 sources. For the first time, we present the multi-wavelength properties of the largest sample of GRGs. Our results establish that the distributions of the radio spectral index and the black hole mass of GRGs do not differ from the corresponding distributions of normal-sized radio galaxies (RGs). However, GRGs have a lower Eddington ratio (ER) than RGs. Using the mid-infrared data, we classified GRGs in terms of their accretion mode: either a high-power radiatively efficient high-excitation state, or a radiatively inefficient low-excitation state. We find that GRGs in high-excitation state statistically have larger sizes, stronger radio power, jet kinetic power, and higher ER than those in low-excitation state. Our analysis reveals a strong correlation between the ER and the scaled jet kinetic power, which suggests a disc-jet coupling. Our environmental study reveals that ~10% of all GRGs may reside at the centres of galaxy clusters, in a denser galactic environment, while the majority appears to reside in a sparse environment. We find that the probability of BCG as a GRG is quite low. We present new results for GRGs that range from black hole mass to large-scale environment properties. We discuss their formation and growth scenarios, highlighting the key physical factors that cause them to reach their gigantic size. Abridged.

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arXiv2019

GMRT observations of a first sample of Extremely Inverted Spectrum Extragalactic Radio Sources (EISERS) candidates in the Northern sky

We present an extension of our search for Extremely Inverted Spectrum Extragalactic Radio Sources (EISERS) to the northern celestial hemisphere. With an inverted radio spectrum of slope $α$ > +2.5, these rare sources would either require a non-standard particle acceleration mechanism (in the framework of synchrotron self-absorption hypothesis), or a severe free-free absorption which attenuates practically all of their synchrotron radiation at metre wavelengths. By applying a sequence of selection filters, a list of 15 EISERS candidates is extracted out by comparing two large-sky radio surveys, WENSS (325 MHz) and TGSS-ADR1 (150 MHz), which overlap across 1.03$π$ steradian of the sky. Here we report quasi-simultaneous GMRT observations of these 15 EISERS candidates at 150 MHz and 325 MHz, in an attempt to accurately define their spectra below the turnover frequency. Out of the 15 candidates observed, two are confirmed as EISERS, since the slope of the inverted spectrum between these two frequencies is found to be significantly larger than the critical value $α_c$ = +2.5: the theoretical limit for the standard case of synchrotron self-absorption (SSA). For another 3 sources, the spectral slope is close to, or just above the critical value $α_c$. Nine of the sources have GPS type radio spectra. The parsec-scale radio structural information available for the sample is also summarised.

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arXiv2019

GMRT observations of extragalactic radio sources with steeply inverted spectra

We report quasi-simultaneous GMRT observations of seven extragalactic radio sources at 150, 325, 610 and 1400 MHz, in an attempt to accurately define their radio continuum spectra, particularly at frequencies below the observed spectral turnover. We had previously identified these sources as candidates for a sharply inverted integrated radio spectrum whose slope is close to, or even exceeds $α_c$ = +2.5, the theoretical limit due to synchrotron self-absorption (SSA) in a source of incoherent synchrotron radiation arising from relativistic particles with the canonical (i.e., power-law) energy distribution. We find that four out of the seven candidates have an inverted radio spectrum with a slope close to or exceeding +2.0, while the critical spectral slope $α_c$ is exceeded in at least one case. These sources, together with another one or two reported in very recent literature, may well be the archetypes of an extremely rare class, from the standpoint of violation of the SSA limit in compact extragalactic radio sources. However, the alternative possibility that free-free absorption is responsible for their ultra-sharp spectral turnover cannot yet be discounted.

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arXiv2018

AGN Feedback in galaxy groups: a detailed study of X-ray features and diffuse radio emission in IC1262

This paper reports a systematic search of X-ray cavities, density jumps and shocks in the inter-galactic environment of the galaxy group IC~1262 using {\it Chandra}, GMRT and VLA archival observations. The X-ray imaging analysis reveals a pair of X-ray cavities on the north and south of the X-ray peak, at projected distances of 6.48\,kpc and 6.30\,kpc respectively. Total mechanical power contained in both these cavities is found to be $\sim$12.37$\times 10^{42}$ erg~s$^{-1}$, and compares well with the X-ray luminosity, within the cooling radius, measured to be $\sim 3.29 \times 10^{42}$ erg~s$^{-1}$, suggesting that the mechanical power injected by the central AGN efficiently balances the radiative loss. We detect a previously unknown X-ray cavity at the position of southern radio lobe in the intra-group medium and find a loop of excess X-ray emission extending $\sim$100 kpc southwest from the central galaxy. The X-ray cavity at the position of southern radio lobe probably represents a first generation X-ray cavity. Two surface brightness edges are evident to the west and east$-$north of the center of this group. The radio galaxy at the core of the IC~1262 group is a rare low-redshift ultra-steep radio galaxy, its spectral index being $α\! \sim\! -1.73$ (including the central AGN) and $α\! \sim\! -2.08$ (excluding the central AGN). We detect a radio phoenix embedded within the southern radio lobe, for the first time in a poor group, with a spectral index ($α\!\leq\! -1.92$). The spectral index distribution across the phoenix steepens with increasing distance from its intensity peak.

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arXiv2017

`Zwicky's Nonet': a compact merging ensemble of nine galaxies and 4C 35.06, a peculiar radio galaxy with dancing radio jets

We report the results of our radio, optical and infra-red studies of a peculiar radio source 4C~35.06, an extended radio-loud AGN at the center of galaxy cluster Abell 407 ($z=0.047$). The central region of this cluster hosts a remarkably tight ensemble of nine galaxies, the spectra of which resemble those of passive red ellipticals, embedded within a diffuse stellar halo of $\sim$1~arcmin size. This system (named the `Zwicky's Nonet') provides unique and compelling evidence for a multiple-nucleus cD galaxy precursor. Multifrequency radio observations of 4C~35.06 with the Giant Meterwave Radio Telescope (GMRT) at 610, 235 and 150 MHz reveal a system of 400~kpc scale helically twisted and kinked radio jets and outer diffuse lobes. The outer extremities of jets contain extremely steep spectrum (spectral index -1.7 to -2.5) relic/fossil radio plasma with a spectral age of a few$\,\times (10^7 - 10^8)$ yr. Such ultra-steep spectrum relic radio lobes without definitive hot-spots are rare, and they provide an opportunity to understand the life-cycle of relativistic jets and physics of black hole mergers in dense environments. We interpret our observations of this radio source in the context of the growth of its central black hole, triggering of its AGN activity and jet precession, all possibly caused by galaxy mergers in this dense galactic system. A slow conical precession of the jet axis due to gravitational perturbation between interacting black holes is invoked to explain the unusual jet morphology.

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arXiv2017

MACS J0553.4-3342: A young merging galaxy cluster caught through the eyes of Chandra and HST

We present a detailed analysis of a young merging galaxy cluster \mac~(z=0.43), from {\it Chandra} X-ray and {\it Hubble Space Telescope} archival data. X-ray observations confirm that the X-ray emitting intra-cluster medium (ICM) in this system is among the hottest (average $T=12.1 \pm 0.6$ keV) and most luminous known. Comparison of X-ray and optical images confirm that this system hosts two merging subclusters SC1 and SC2, separated by a projected distance of about 650\,kpc. The subcluster SC2 is newly identified in this work, while another subcluster (SC0), previously thought to be part of this merging system, is shown to be possibly a foreground object. Apart from two subclusters, we find a tail-like structure in the X-ray image, extending to a projected distance of $\sim$1\,Mpc, along the north-east direction of the eastern subcluster (SC1). From a surface brightness analysis, we detect two sharp surface brightness edges at $\sim$40$\arcsec$ ($\sim$320\,kpc) and $\sim$80$\arcsec$ ($\sim$640\,kpc) to the east of SC1. The inner edge appears to be associated with a merger-driven cold front, while the outer one is likely to be due to a shock front, the presence of which, ahead of the cold front, makes this dynamically disturbed cluster interesting. Nearly all the early-type galaxies belonging to the two subclusters, including their BCGs, are part of a well-defined red sequence.

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