Possible environmental quenching in an interacting little red dot pair at $z\sim7$

Understand

We report the discovery of a $z\sim7$ group of galaxies that contains two little red dots (LRDs) just 3.3 kpc apart, along with three potential satellite galaxies, as part of the Canadian NIRISS Unbiased Cluster Survey (CANUCS).

• The spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of this LRD pair show evidence of a Balmer break, consistent with a recent ($\sim 100$ Myr) quenching of star formation.
• In contrast, the satellites are compatible with a recent-onset ($\sim 100$ Myr), ongoing burst of star formation.
• LRD1's SED is consistent with a dust-free active galactic nucleus (AGN) being the source of the UV excess in the galaxy.