Unveiling the Physics of Ram Pressure Stripping: New Insights from GASP Jellyfish Galaxies

Jellyfish galaxies, characterized by long filaments of stripped interstellar medium extending from their disks, are prime laboratories to study the results of ram pressure stripping and to explore the astrophysics of galaxies under extreme conditions. I will present a series of recent results in this field made by the GASP (GAs Stripping phenomena in galaxies with MUSE) team based on a multi-wavelength survey of ram pressure-stripped galaxies. Using a combination of radio and optical observations, we have explored how the non-thermal components of the interstellar medium, namely magnetic fields and cosmic rays, evolve under the influence of ram pressure. I will present a model that explains the origin of non-thermal radio continuum tails and how the tail magnetic field can regulate the interplay between the stripped interstellar medium and the surrounding intracluster medium. I will also show how we can use the stripped ionized plasma tails to probe the microphysics of the intracluster medium. Finally, I will discuss the ongoing research and our future goals.

Brief CV of Dr. Alessandro Ignesti:

He obtained a Ph.D. in Astrophysics in 2021 at the University of Bologna and the INAF-Institute of Radio Astronomy with a thesis on the role of the ICM in the evolution of radio sources in “relaxed” galaxy clusters (“Interplay between relativistic and thermal plasma in relaxed galaxy clusters” under the supervision of Prof. M. Gitti and Dr. G. Brunetti). Subsequently, he moved to INAF-Padova for a postdoc (2021-current position) to work with the GASP collaboration where he is responsible for radio and X-ray studies of “jellyfish” galaxies. He is a member of the LOFAR Survey Key Project – Cluster Working Group and the SKAO Extragalactic Continuum Working Group.