Abell 2261: a fossil galaxy cluster in a transition phase

Fossil groups of galaxies have characteristic features of a dominant central elliptical galaxy (${\Delta}M_{12}$ > 2 in $0.5R_{vir}$) embedded in highly relaxed X-ray halo, which indicates dynamically stable and evolved systems. These are thought as a final stage of the evolution of galaxy groups in the hierarchical structure formation scenario. However, the formation and evolution of fossil clusters are still unclear due to lack of detailed studies. Therefore, we perform a kinematic research of a known fossil cluster Abell 2261 (A2261 hereafter) using spectroscopic data of 589 galaxies in the A2261 field. Even though A2261 is known as a fossil cluster, previous studies found several unusual features such as quite high X-ray entropy for a stable cluster, and an elongated shape, which are not expected in standard fossil clusters. Using the caustic method, we identify cluster member galaxies and discover a second bright galaxy (${\Delta}M_{12}=1.68$) at ${\sim}1.5R_{vir}$. The presence of such a bright galaxy can break the current fossil state of cluster in the near future. In addition, with two independent substructure finding methods, we confirm that the previously detected elongated galaxy distribution of the cluster is a real feature. These findings indicate that A2261 is not in a fully stable state, unlike the existing fossil definition diagnostic. We require a more stringent criterion for the fossil definition to represent a genuinely final stage of cluster evolution.