Phase Space as a Tool for Understanding Galaxy Cluster Environmental Effects

A galaxy-cluster phase space diagram is a simple plot of clustocentric velocity versus clustocentric radius for each member of the cluster. Using state-of-the-art, cosmological hydrodynamical simulations, we investigate where simulated galaxies fall in phase space. We find the galaxies with different cluster infall times often separate cleanly in phase space. We also investigate how a galaxy's location in phase space is correlated with its tidal mass loss, and ram pressure stripping. By comparing our simulated cluster galaxies to observed cluster galaxies, we show how phase space diagrams are essential tools for understanding environmental effects acting on cluster galaxies.