Nearby Galaxy Clusters Research Articles

HIFLUGCS: X-ray luminosity-dynamical mass relation and its implications for mass calibrations with the SPIDERS and 4MOST surveys

We present the relation of X-ray luminosity versus dynamical mass for 63 nearby clusters of galaxies in a flux-limited sample, the HIghest X-ray FLUx Galaxy Cluster Sample (HIFLUGCS, consisting of 64 clusters). The luminosity measurements are obtained based on ~ 1.3 Ms of clean XMM-Newton data and ROSAT pointed observations. The masses are estimated using optical spectroscopic redshifts of 13647 cluster galaxies in total. We classify clusters into disturbed and undisturbed based on a combination of the X-ray luminosity concentration and the offset between the brightest cluster galaxy and X-ray flux-weighted center. Given sufficient numbers (i.e., ≥45) of member galaxies when the dynamical masses are computed, the luminosity versus mass relations agree between the disturbed and undisturbed clusters. The cool-core clusters still dominate the scatter in the luminosity versus mass relation even when a core-corrected X-ray luminosity is used, which indicates that the scatter of this scaling relation mainly reflects the structure formation history of the clusters. As shown by the clusters with only few spectroscopically confirmed members, the dynamical masses can be underestimated and thus lead to a biased scaling relation. To investigate the potential of spectroscopic surveys to follow up high-redshift galaxy clusters or groups observed in X-ray surveys for the identifications and mass calibrations, we carried out Monte Carlo resampling of the cluster galaxy redshifts and calibrated the uncertainties of the redshift and dynamical mass estimates when only reduced numbers of galaxy redshifts per cluster are available. The resampling considers the SPIDERS and 4MOST configurations, designed for the follow-up of the eROSITA clusters, and was carried out for each cluster in the sample at the actual cluster redshift as well as at the assigned input cluster redshifts of 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8. To follow up very distant clusters or groups, we also carried out the mass calibration based on the resampling with only ten redshifts per cluster, and redshift calibration based on the resampling with only five and ten redshifts per cluster, respectively. Our results demonstrate the power of combining upcoming X-ray and optical spectroscopic surveys for mass calibration of clusters. The scatter in the dynamical mass estimates for the clusters with at least ten members is within 50%.

Emission line galaxies and active galactic nuclei in WINGS clusters

We present the analysis of the emission line galaxies members of 46 low redshift (0.04 < z < 0.07) clusters observed by WINGS (WIde-field Nearby Galaxy cluster Survey, Fasano et al. 2006). Emission line galaxies were identified following criteria that are meant to minimize biases against non-star forming galaxies and classified employing diagnostic diagrams. We have examined the emission line properties and frequencies of star forming galaxies, transition objects and active galactic nuclei (AGNs: LINERs and Seyferts), unclassified galaxies with emission lines, and quiescent galaxies with no detectable line emission. A deficit of emission line galaxies in the cluster environment is indicated by both a lower frequency with respect to control samples, and by a systematically lower Balmer emission line equivalent width and luminosity (up to one order of magnitude in equivalent width with respect to control samples for transition objects) that implies a lower amount of ionised gas per unit mass and a lower star formation rate if the source is classified as Hii region. A sizable population of transition objects and of low-luminosity LINERs (approx. 10 - 20% of all emission line galaxies) is detected among WINGS cluster galaxies. With respect to Hii sources they are a factor of approx. 1.5 more frequent than (or at least as frequent as) in control samples. Transition objects and LINERs in cluster are most affected in terms of line equivalent width by the environment and appear predominantly consistent with "retired" galaxies. Shock heating can be a possible gas excitation mechanism able to account for observed line ratios. Specific to the cluster environment, we suggest interaction between atomic and molecular gas and the intracluster medium as a possible physical cause of line-emitting shocks.

Deep spectroscopy in nearby galaxy clusters – III. Orbital structure of galaxies in Abell 85

Galaxies in clusters are strongly affected by their environment. They evolve according to several physical mechanisms that are active in clusters. Their efficiency can strongly depend on the orbital configuration of the galaxies. Our aim is to analyse the orbits of the galaxies in the cluster Abell 85, based on the study of the galaxy velocity anisotropy parameter. We have solved the Jeans equation under the assumption that the galaxies in A85 are collisionless objects, within the spherically symmetric gravitational potential of the virialized cluster. The mass of the cluster was estimated with X-ray and caustic analyses. We find that the anisotropy profile of the full galaxy population in A85 is an increasing monotonic function of the distance from the cluster centre: on average, galaxies in the central region (r/r200 < 0.3) are on isotropic orbits, while galaxies in the outer regions are on radial orbits. We also find that the orbital properties of the galaxies strongly depend on their stellar colour. In particular, blue galaxies are on less radial orbits than red galaxies. The different families of cluster galaxies considered here have the pseudo phase-space density profiles Q(r) and Qr(r) consistent with the profiles expected in virialized dark matter halos in $N$-body simulations. This result suggests that the galaxies in A85 have reached dynamical equilibrium within the cluster potential. Our results indicate that the origin of the blue and red colour of the different galaxy populations is the different orbital shape rather than the accretion time.

STAR FORMATION AND SUPERCLUSTER ENVIRONMENT OF 107 NEARBY GALAXY CLUSTERS

ABSTRACT We analyze the relationship between star formation (SF), substructure, and supercluster environment in a sample of 107 nearby galaxy clusters using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Previous works have investigated the relationships between SF and cluster substructure, and cluster substructure and supercluster environment, but definitive conclusions relating all three of these variables has remained elusive. We find an inverse relationship between cluster SF fraction (f SF) and supercluster environment density, calculated using the Galaxy luminosity density field at a smoothing length of 8 h −1 Mpc (D8). The slope of f SF versus D8 is −0.008 ± 0.002. The f SF of clusters located in low-density large-scale environments, 0.244 ± 0.011, is higher than for clusters located in high-density supercluster cores, 0.202 ± 0.014. We also divide superclusters, according to their morphology, into filament- and spider-type systems. The inverse relationship between cluster f SF and large-scale density is dominated by filament- rather than spider-type superclusters. In high-density cores of superclusters, we find a higher f SF in spider-type superclusters, 0.229 ± 0.016, than in filament-type superclusters, 0.166 ± 0.019. Using principal component analysis, we confirm these results and the direct correlation between cluster substructure and SF. These results indicate that cluster SF is affected by both the dynamical age of the cluster (younger systems exhibit higher amounts of SF); the large-scale density of the supercluster environment (high-density core regions exhibit lower amounts of SF); and supercluster morphology (spider-type superclusters exhibit higher amounts of SF at high densities).

Interpretations of the possible 42.7 GeVγ-ray line

Recently Liang et al. found a tentative line signal at about 43 GeV in the directions of sixteen nearby Galaxy Clusters. If arising from dark matter annihilation, the mass of the dark matter particles should be $m_{\chi}\sim 43$ GeV and the annihilation cross section $\langle \sigma v \rangle \sim 5\times10^{-28}(\overline{\rm BF}/10^{3})^{-1}~{\rm cm^3~s^{-1}}$ is needed, where $\overline{\rm BF}$ is the averaged boost factor of the annihilation signal of these Galaxy Clusters. In this work we discuss several models which could interpret these features and estimate the model parameters. Usually sizeable coupling parameter is needed. The $2\sigma$ upper limits on the cross section of the dark matter annihilation into various final states such as $b\bar{b}$, $\mu^+\mu^-$ and so on are also presented.

Faint dwarf galaxies in Hickson Compact Group 90

We report the discovery of a very diverse set of five low-surface brightness (LSB) dwarf galaxy candidates in Hickson Compact Group 90 (HCG 90) detected in deep U- and I-band images obtained with VLT/VIMOS. These are the first LSB dwarf galaxy candidates found in a compact group of galaxies. We measure spheroid half-light radii in the range $0.7\!\lesssim\! r_{\rm eff}/{\rm kpc}\! \lesssim\! 1.5$ with luminosities of $-11.65\!\lesssim\! M_U\! \lesssim\! -9.42$ and $-12.79\!\lesssim\! M_I\! \lesssim\! -10.58$ mag, corresponding to a color range of $(U\!-\!I)_0\!\simeq\!1.1\!-\!2.2$ mag and surface brightness levels of $\mu_U\!\simeq\!28.1\,{\rm mag/arcsec^2}$ and $\mu_I\!\simeq\!27.4\,{\rm mag/arcsec^2}$. Their colours and luminosities are consistent with a diverse set of stellar population properties. Assuming solar and 0.02 Z$_\odot$ metallicities we obtain stellar masses in the range $M_*|_{Z_\odot} \simeq 10^{5.7-6.3} M_{\odot}$ and $M_*|_{0.02\,Z_\odot}\!\simeq\!10^{6.3-8}\,M_{\odot}$. Three dwarfs are older than 1 Gyr, while the other two significantly bluer dwarfs are younger than $\sim 2$ Gyr at any mass/metallicity combination. Altogether, the new LSB dwarf galaxy candidates share properties with dwarf galaxies found throughout the Local Volume and in nearby galaxy clusters such as Fornax. We find a pair of candidates with $\sim\!2$ kpc projected separation, which may represent one of the closest dwarf galaxy pairs found. We also find a nucleated dwarf candidate, with a nucleus size of $r_{\rm eff}\!\simeq\!46\!-\!63$ pc and magnitude M$_{U,0}=-7.42$ mag and $(U\!-\!I)_0\!=\!1.51$ mag, which is consistent with a nuclear stellar disc with a stellar mass in the range $10^{4.9-6.5}\,M_\odot$.

NUMERICAL SIMULATIONS CHALLENGED ON THE PREDICTION OF MASSIVE SUBHALO ABUNDANCE IN GALAXY CLUSTERS: THE CASE OF ABELL 2142

ABSTRACT In this Letter we compare the abundance of the member galaxies of a rich, nearby (z = 0.09) galaxy cluster, Abell 2142, with that of halos of comparable virial mass extracted from sets of state-of-the-art numerical simulations, both collisionless at different resolutions and with the inclusion of baryonic physics in the form of cooling, star formation, and feedback by active galactic nuclei. We also use two semi-analytical models to account for the presence of orphan galaxies. The photometric and spectroscopic information, taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 12 database, allows us to estimate the stellar velocity dispersion of member galaxies of Abell 2142. This quantity is used as proxy for the total mass of secure cluster members and is properly compared with that of subhalos in simulations. We find that simulated halos have a statistically significant ( ≳ 7 sigma confidence level) smaller amount of massive (circular velocity above 200 km s − 1 ) subhalos, even before accounting for the possible incompleteness of observations. These results corroborate the findings from a recent strong lensing study of the Hubble Frontier Fields galaxy cluster MACS J0416 and suggest that the observed difference is already present at the level of dark matter (DM) subhalos and is not solved by introducing baryonic physics. A deeper understanding of this discrepancy between observations and simulations will provide valuable insights into the impact of the physical properties of DM particles and the effect of baryons on the formation and evolution of cosmological structures.

Origin of central abundances in the hot intra-cluster medium

The hot intra-cluster medium (ICM) is rich in metals, which are synthesized by supernovae (SNe) explosions and accumulate over time into the deep gravitational potential well of clusters of galaxies. Since most of the elements visible in X-rays are formed by type Ia (SNIa) and/or core-collapse (SNcc) supernovae, measuring their abundances gives us direct information on the nucleosynthesis products of billions of SNe since the epoch of the star formation peak (z ~ 2-3). In this study, we use the EPIC and RGS instruments onboard XMM-Newton to measure the abundances of 9 elements (O, Ne, Mg, Si, S, Ar, Ca, Fe and Ni) from a sample of 44 nearby cool-core galaxy clusters, groups, and elliptical galaxies. We find that the Fe abundance shows a large scatter (~20-40%) over the sample, within 0.2$r_{500}$ and, especially, 0.05$r_{500}$. Unlike the absolute Fe abundance, the abundance ratios (X/Fe) are quite uniform over the considered temperature range (~0.6-8 keV), and with a limited scatter. In addition to a unprecedented treatment of systematic uncertainties, we provide the most accurate abundance ratios measured so far in the ICM, including Cr/Fe and Mn/Fe that we firmly detect (>4{\sigma} with MOS and pn independently). We find that Cr/Fe, Mn/Fe and Ni/Fe, differ significantly from the proto-solar values. However, the large uncertainties in the proto-solar abundances prevent us from making a robust comparison between the local and the intra-cluster chemical enrichments. We also note that, interestingly, and despite the large net exposure time (~4.5 Ms) of our dataset, no line emission feature is seen around ~3.5 keV.

Constraints on neutrino masses from the study of the nearby large-scale structure and galaxy cluster counts

The high precision measurements of the cosmic microwave background by the Planck survey yielded tight constraints on cosmological parameters and the statistics of the density fluctuations at the time of recombination. This provides the means for a critical study of structure formation in the Universe by comparing the microwave background results with present epoch measurements of the cosmic large-scale structure. It can reveal subtle effects such as how different forms of Dark Matter may modify structure growth. Currently most interesting is the damping effect of structure growth by massive neutrinos. Different observations of low redshift matter density fluctuations provided evidence for a signature of massive neutrinos. Here we discuss the study of the cosmic large-scale structure with a complete sample of nearby, X-ray luminous clusters from our REFLEX cluster survey. From the observed X-ray luminosity function and its reproduction for different cosmological models, we obtain tight constraints on the cosmological parameters describing the matter density, [Formula: see text], and the density fluctuation amplitude, [Formula: see text]. A comparison of these constraints with the Planck results shows a discrepancy in the framework of a pure [Formula: see text]CDM model, but the results can be reconciled, if we allow for a neutrino mass in the range of 0.17 eV to 0.7 eV. Also some others, but not all of the observations of the nearby large-scale structure provide evidence or trends for signatures of massive neutrinos. With further improvement in the systematics and future survey projects, these indications will develop into a definitive measurement of neutrino masses.

Detail studies of the physical properties in the outer regions of galaxy clusters using Suzaku observations

A detailed physical analysis of five nearby galaxy clusters using Suzaku observationsis presented. The low and stable level of the instrumental background at large radii facilitate the determination of the main physical characteristics in clusters at the virial radius. The temperatures, metal abundances, and entropy profiles have been constructed out to the outskirts of the clusters. The temperature profiles all display the same shape, with a negative gradient towards to the center and a flat outer plateau. The strong temperature gradients in the central parts of the clusters are usually associated with strong peaks of the surface brightness profiles. The temperature systematically decrease outward from the central regions, by a factor of three at and slightly beyond the cluster outskirts. The temperature profiles are compared with profiles predicted by N-body and hydrodynamical simulations obtained using several numerical algorithms. The slopes in the observed and simulated temperature profiles are consistent with each other in the cluster outskirts. The central regions of the clusters are characterized by low entropy and high metallicity. The possible influence of cool cores on the cluster outskirts is also discussed. The total mass profiles were determined using the observed gas-density and temperature profiles, assuming hydrostatic equilibriumand spherical symmetry. The gas-density profiles were fitted using an improved three-dimensional model to fit the inner and outer regions of the cluster independently. The total mass profiles were described using an NFW model out to R 200. The measurements show clear evidence for universality of the total mass distribution. The scaled mass profiles in units of R 200 and M 200 display a dispersion of ~15% at 0.1R 200. The fraction of gas out to R 200 was also found.

Search for a gamma-ray line feature from a group of nearby galaxy clusters with Fermi LAT Pass 8 data

Galaxy clusters are the largest gravitationally bound objects in the universe and may be suitable targets for indirect dark matter searches. With 85 months of Fermi-LAT Pass 8 publicly available data, we analyze the gamma-ray emission in the directions of 16 nearby Galaxy Clusters with an unbinned likelihood analysis. No globally statistically-significant $\gamma-$ray line feature is identified and a tentative line signal may be present at $\sim 43$ GeV. The 95\% confidence level upper limits on the velocity-averaged cross section of dark matter particles annihilating into double $\gamma-$rays (i.e., $\langle \sigma v \rangle_{\chi\chi\rightarrow \gamma\gamma}$) are derived. Unless very optimistic boost factors of dark matter annihilation in these Galaxy Clusters have been assumed, such constraints are much weaker than the bounds set by the Galactic $\gamma-$ray data.

A RICH GLOBULAR CLUSTER SYSTEM IN DRAGONFLY 17: ARE ULTRA-DIFFUSE GALAXIES PURE STELLAR HALOS?*

ABSTRACT Observations of nearby galaxy clusters at low surface brightness have identified galaxies with low luminosities, but sizes as large as L ⋆ galaxies, leading them to be dubbed “ultra-diffuse galaxies” (UDGs). The survival of UDGs in dense environments like the Coma cluster suggests that UDGs could reside in much more massive dark halos. We report the detection of a substantial population of globular clusters (GCs) around a Coma UDG, Dragonfly 17 (DF17). We find that DF17 has a high GC specific frequency of S N = 26 ± 13. The GC system is extended, with an effective radius of 12″ ± 2″, or 5.6 ± 0.9 kpc at Coma distance, 70% larger than the galaxy itself. We also estimate the mean of the GC luminosity function to infer a distance of 97 − 14 + 17 Mpc, providing redshift-independent confirmation that one of these UDGs is in the Coma cluster. The presence of a rich GC system in DF17 indicates that, despite its low stellar density, star formation was intense enough to form many massive star clusters. If DF17's ratio of total GC mass to total halo mass is similar to those in other galaxies, then DF17 has an inferred total mass of ∼1011 M ⊙, only ∼10% the mass of the Milky Way, but extremely dominated by dark matter, with M/L V ≈ 1000. We suggest that UDGs like DF17 may be “pure stellar halos,” i.e., galaxies that formed their stellar halo components, but then suffered an early cessation in star formation that prevented the formation of any substantial central disk or bulge.

The abundance and spatial distribution of ultra-diffuse galaxies in nearby galaxy clusters

Recent observations have highlighted a significant population of faint but large (r_eff>1.5 kpc) galaxies in the Coma cluster. The origin of these Ultra Diffuse Galaxies (UDGs) remains puzzling, as the interpretation of the observational results has been hindered by the subjective selection of UDGs, and the limited study of only the Coma (and some examples in the Virgo-) cluster. We extend the study of UDGs using 8 clusters in the redshift range 0.044<z<0.063 with deep g- and r-band imaging data taken with MegaCam at the CFHT. We describe an automatic selection pipeline for quantitative identification, tested for completeness using image simulations of these galaxies. We find that the abundance of the UDGs we can detect increases with cluster mass, reaching ~200 in typical haloes of M200~10^15 Msun. The cluster UDGs have colours consistent with the cluster red sequence, and have a steep size distribution that declines as n~r_eff^-3.4. Their radial distribution is significantly steeper than NFW in the outskirts, and is significantly shallower in the inner parts. They follow the same radial distribution as the more massive quiescent galaxies in the clusters, except within the core region of r<0.15XR200 (or <300 kpc). Within this region the number density of UDGs drops and is consistent with zero. These diffuse galaxies can only resist tidal forces down to this cluster-centric distance if they are highly centrally dark-matter dominated. The observation that the radial distribution of more compact dwarf galaxies (r_eff<1.0 kpc) with similar luminosities follows the same distribution as the UDGs, but exist down to a smaller distance of 100kpc from the cluster centres, indicates that they may have similarly massive sub-haloes as the UDGs. Although several scenarios can give rise to the UDG population, our results point to differences in the formation history as the most plausible explanation.

AGN jet power, formation of X-ray cavities, and FR I/II dichotomy in galaxy clusters

Abstract We investigate the ability of jets in active galactic nuclei to break out of the ambient gas with sufficiently large advance velocities. Using observationally estimated jet power, we analyze 28 bright elliptical galaxies in nearby galaxy clusters. Because the gas density profiles in the innermost regions of galaxies have not been resolved so far, we consider two extreme cases for temperature and density profiles. We also follow two types of evolution for the jet cocoons: being driven by the pressure inside the cocoon [Fanaroff–Riley (FR) type I], and being driven by the jet momentum (FR type II). Our main result is that regardless of the assumed form of the density profiles, jets with observed powers of ≲1044 erg s−1 are not powerful enough to evolve as FR II sources. Instead, they evolve as FR I sources and appear to be decelerated below the buoyant velocities of the cocoons when jets were propagating through the central dense regions of the host galaxies. This explains why FR I sources are more frequent than FR II sources in clusters. Furthermore, we predict the sizes of X-ray cavities from the observed jet powers and compare them with the observed ones—they are consistent within a factor of two if the FR I type evolution is realized. Finally, we find that the jets with a power ≳1044 erg s−1 are less affected by the ambient medium, and some of them, but not all, could serve as precursors of the FR II sources.

Ultradiffuse galaxies: the high-spin tail of the abundant dwarf galaxy population

Abstract Recent observations have revealed the existence of an abundant population of faint, low surface brightness (SB) galaxies, which appear to be numerous and ubiquitous in nearby galaxy clusters, including the Virgo, Coma and Fornax clusters. With median stellar masses of dwarf galaxies, these ultradiffuse galaxies (UDGs) have unexpectedly large sizes, corresponding to a mean SB of 24 ≲ 〈μe〉r mag−1 arcsec2 ≲ 27 within the effective radius. We show that the UDG population represents the tail of galaxies formed in dwarf-sized haloes with higher-than-average angular momentum. By adopting the standard model of disc formation – in which the size of galaxies is set by the spin of the halo – we recover both the abundance of UDGs as a function of the host cluster mass and the distribution of sizes within the UDG population. According to this model, UDGs are not failed L* galaxies, but genuine dwarfs, and their low SB is not uniquely connected to the harsh cluster environment. We therefore expect a correspondingly abundant population of UDGs in the field, with possibly different morphologies and colours.

Star formation and black hole accretion activity in rich local clusters of galaxies

We present a study of the star formation and central black hole accretion activity of the galaxies hosted in the two nearby (z$\sim$0.2) rich galaxy clusters Abell 983 and 1731. Aims: We are able to quantify both the obscured and unobscured star formation rates, as well as the presence of active galactic nuclei (AGN) as a function of the environment in which the galaxy is located. Methods: We targeted the clusters with unprecedented deep infrared Spitzer observations (0.2 mJy @ 24 micron), near-IR Palomar imaging and optical WIYN spectroscopy. The extent of our observations ($\sim$ 3 virial radii) covers the vast range of possible environments, from the very dense cluster centre to the very rarefied cluster outskirts and accretion regions. Results: The star forming members of the two clusters present star formation rates comparable with those measured in coeval field galaxies. The analysis of the spatial arrangement of the spectroscopically confirmed members reveals an elongated distribution for A1731 with respect to the more uniform distribution of A983. The emerging picture is compatible with A983 being a fully evolved cluster, in contrast with the still actively accreting A1731. Conclusions: The analysis of the specific star formation rate reveals evidence of on-going galaxy pre-processing along A1731's filament-like structure. Furthermore, the decrease in the number of star forming galaxies and AGN towards the cluster cores suggests that the cluster environment is accelerating the ageing process of galaxies and blocking further accretion of the cold gas that fuels both star formation and black hole accretion activity.

Shell-like structures in our cosmic neighbourhood

Signatures of the processes in the early Universe are imprinted in the cosmic web. Some of them may define shell-like structures characterised by typical scales. We search for shell-like structures in the distribution of nearby rich clusters of galaxies drawn from the SDSS DR8. We calculate the distance distributions between rich clusters of galaxies, and groups and clusters of various richness, look for the maxima in the distance distributions, and select candidates of shell-like structures. We analyse the space distribution of groups and clusters forming shell walls. We find six possible candidates of shell-like structures, in which galaxy clusters have maxima in the distance distribution to other galaxy groups and clusters at the distance of about 120 Mpc/h. The rich galaxy cluster A1795, the central cluster of the Bootes supercluster, has the highest maximum in the distance distribution of other groups and clusters around them at the distance of about 120 Mpc/h among our rich cluster sample, and another maximum at the distance of about 240 Mpc/h. The structures of galaxy systems causing the maxima at 120 Mpc/h form an almost complete shell of galaxy groups, clusters and superclusters. The richest systems in the nearby universe, the Sloan Great Wall, the Corona Borealis supercluster and the Ursa Major supercluster are among them. The probability that we obtain maxima like this from random distributions is lower than 0.001. Our results confirm that shell-like structures can be found in the distribution of nearby galaxies and their systems. The radii of the possible shells are larger than expected for a BAO shell (approximately 109 Mpc/h versus approximately 120 Mpc/h), and they are determined by very rich galaxy clusters and superclusters with high density contrast while BAO shells are barely seen in the galaxy distribution. We discuss possible consequences of these differences.

Central mass profiles of the nearby cool-core galaxy clusters Hydra A and A478

We perform a weak-lensing study of the nearby cool-core galaxy clusters, Hydra A ($z=0.0538$) and A478 ($z=0.0881$), of which brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) host powerful activities of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). For each cluster, the observed tangential shear profile is well described either by a single Navarro--Frenk--White model or a two-component model including the BCG as an unresolved point mass. For A478, we determine the BCG and its host-halo masses from a joint fit to weak-lensing and stellar photometry measurements. We find that the choice of initial mass functions (IMFs) can introduce a factor of two uncertainty in the BCG mass, whereas the BCG host halo mass is well constrained by data. We perform a joint analysis of weak-lensing and stellar kinematics data available for the Hydra A cluster, which allows us to constrain the central mass profile without assuming specific IMFs. We find that the central mass profile ($r<300$kpc) determined from the joint analysis is in excellent agreement with those from independent measurements, including dynamical masses estimated from the cold gas disk component, X-ray hydrostatic total mass estimates, and the central stellar mass estimated based on the Salpeter IMF. The observed dark-matter fraction around the BCG for Hydra A is found to be smaller than those predicted by adiabatic contraction models, suggesting the importance of other physical processes, such as the the AGN feedback and/or dissipationless mergers.

Search for gas bulk motions in eight nearby clusters of galaxies with Suzaku

Abstract To search for bulk motions of the intracluster medium, we analyzed X-ray spectra taken with the Suzaku satellite, and measured the Doppler shift of the Fe-K line emission from eight nearby clusters of galaxies with various X-ray morphologies. In the cores of the Centaurus and Perseus clusters, the gas bulk velocity does not exceed the sound velocity, which confirms the results of previous researchs. For the Cen 45 subcluster, we found that the radial velocity relative to the Centaurus core, &amp;lt;780 km s−1, is significantly smaller than that reported in the optical band at the 3.9 σ level, which suggests an offset between the gas and galaxy distributions along the line of sight due to the subcluster merger. In A 2199, A 2142, A 3667, and A 133, no significant bulk motion was detected, indicating an upper limit on the radial velocity of 3000–4000 km s−1. A sign of large bulk velocity in excess of the instrumental calibration uncertainty was found near the center of the cool-core cluster A 2029 and in a subcluster of the merging cluster A 2255, suggesting that the nonthermal pressure support is not negligible in estimating the total gravitational mass of not only merging clusters, but also relaxed clusters, as predicted by numerical simulations. To improve the significance of the detection, however, a further examination by follow-up observations is required. The present study provides a pilot survey prior to future high-resolution spectroscopy with ASTRO-H, which is expected to play a critical role in revealing the dynamical evolutions of clusters.

Observation of the new emission line at ~3.5 keV in X-ray spectra of galaxies and galaxy clusters

The detection of an unidentified emission line in the X-ray spectra of cosmic objects would be a `smoking gun' signature for the particle physics beyond the Standard Model. More than a decade of its extensive searches results in several narrow faint emission lines reported at 3.5, 8.7, 9.4 and 10.1 keV. The most promising of them is the emission line at ~3.5 keV reported in spectra of several nearby galaxies and galaxy clusters. Here I summarize its up-to-date status, overview its possible interpretations, including an intriguing connection with the radiatively decaying dark matter, and outline future directions for its studies.