EVOLUTIONARY EFFECTS ON BRIGHTEST CLUSTER GALAXY (BCG) DETECTIONS IN THE CFHTLS-DEEP FIELDS

Abstract

Brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) are the most massive and most luminous galaxies in the universe. These galaxies dominate galaxy clusters and lie at the top of the potential well of clusters. Investigating these galaxies can improve our understandings on galaxy cluster evolution. In this work, evolutionary effects on BCG detections are emphasized. For detecting BCGs, CFHTLS (Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey) galaxy clusters, detected by Olsen et al. (2007) were used. To make a proper BCG detection, modeled galaxy colors should be evolved according to redshift. In this work, it is shown how unevolved galaxy colors can effect BCG detection.