A Spectacular H$\alpha$ Complex in Virgo: Evidence for a Collision Between M86 and NGC 4438 and Implications for Collisional ISM Heating of Ellipticals

TL;DR

Deep Hα imaging reveals a complex filamentary structure connecting M86 and NGC 4438, providing evidence for a collision that heats the interstellar medium and influences galaxy evolution in the Virgo cluster.

Contribution

First direct imaging and spectroscopic evidence of a collision between M86 and NGC 4438, linking galaxy interactions to ISM heating in ellipticals.

Findings

Hα filaments connect M86 and NGC 4438, indicating a collision.

Velocity gradients support the collision scenario.

Collision likely heats the gas, preventing star formation.

Abstract

Deep wide-field H$\alpha$+[NII] imaging around the Virgo cluster giant elliptical galaxy M86 reveals a highly complex and disturbed ISM/ICM. The most striking feature is a set of H$\alpha$ filaments which clearly connect M86 with the nearby disturbed spiral NGC 4438 (23$'$=120 kpc projected away), providing strong evidence for a previously unrecognized collision between them. Spectroscopy of selected regions show a fairly smooth velocity gradient between M86 and NGC 4438, consistent with the collision scenario. Such a collision would impart significant energy into the ISM of M86, probably heating the gas and acting to prevent the gas from cooling to form stars. We propose that cool gas stripped from NGC 4438 during the collision and deposited in its wake is heated by shocks, ram pressure drag, or thermal conduction, producing most of the H$\alpha$ filaments. Some H$\alpha$ filaments are associated with the well-known ridge of bright X-ray emission to the NW of the nucleus, suggesting that the collision is responsible for peculiarities of M86 previously ascribed to other effects. M86 is radio-quiet, thus AGN heating is unlikely to play a significant role. The M86 system has implications for understanding the role of gravitational interactions in the heating of the ISM in ellipticals, and how collisions in clusters transform galaxies.