The global environment of small galaxy groups

Using the DR10 of the Digital Sky Survey, we studied the global environment of small galaxy groups: pairs, triplets, and minor groups (4 to 6 members). This was done by 3 methods: 1) neighbour counts in fixed apertures, 2) Nth neighbour searches, and 3) correlation functions of said groups. Results of all three methods show that pairs prefer regions of lower density when compared to triplets and minor groups. Correlation length and slope may indicate that triplets represent a temporary phase in the evolution of small galaxy groups.