Small Group Dynamics and Extended Gas

Abstract

Interactions between galaxies have spectacular effects on gas dynamics, and small galaxy groups are a privileged place to investigate them. In particular, they could test the existence of cold H2 gas as dark matter in the outer parts of galaxies. HI observations have revealed that galaxies in small groups are deficient in atomic gas, like in richer galaxy clusters such as Virgo, although in a lesser extent. Galaxy interactions could be the cause of this deficiency, stripping the gas out of galaxies and enriching the inter-cluster medium (ICM) in hot gas, which in turn strips gas through ram pressure. Alternatively, the gas present at the formation of the group could have been heated to its virial temperature, and be observed now as X-rays. The dynamical processes related to this extended gas in small galaxy groups are reviewed.