IC 3418: Star formation in a turbulent wake

Abstract

Galaxy Evolution Explorer observations of IC 3418, a low surface brightness galaxy in the Virgo Cluster, revealed a striking 17 kpc UV tail of bright knots and diffuse emission. Hα imaging confirms that star formation is ongoing in the tail. IC 3418 was likely recently ram pressure stripped on its first pass through Virgo. We suggest that star formation is occurring in molecular clouds that formed in IC 3418's turbulent stripped wake. Tides and ram pressure stripping (RPS) of molecular clouds are both disfavored as tail formation mechanisms. The tail is similar to the few other observed star-forming tails, all of which likely formed during RPS. The tails' morphologies reflect the forces present during their formation and can be used to test for dynamical coupling between molecular and diffuse gas, thereby probing the origin of the star-forming molecular gas.