552 research outputs found
Using ACIS on the Chandra X-ray Observatory as a particle radiation monitor II
The Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer is an instrument on the Chandra X-ray
Observatory. CCDs are vulnerable to radiation damage, particularly by soft
protons in the radiation belts and solar storms. The Chandra team has
implemented procedures to protect ACIS during high-radiation events including
autonomous protection triggered by an on-board radiation monitor. Elevated
temperatures have reduced the effectiveness of the on-board monitor. The ACIS
team has developed an algorithm which uses data from the CCDs themselves to
detect periods of high radiation and a flight software patch to apply this
algorithm is currently active on-board the instrument. In this paper, we
explore the ACIS response to particle radiation through comparisons to a number
of external measures of the radiation environment. We hope to better understand
the efficiency of the algorithm as a function of the flux and spectrum of the
particles and the time-profile of the radiation event.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, to be published in Proc. SPIE 8443, "Space
Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012: Ultraviolet to Gamma Ray
A very deep Chandra observation of Abell 1795: The Cold Front and Cooling Wake
We present a new analysis of very deep Chandra observations of the galaxy
cluster Abell 1795. Utilizing nearly 750 ks of net ACIS imaging, we are able to
resolve the thermodynamic structure of the Intracluster Medium (ICM) on length
scales of ~ 1 kpc near the cool core. We find several previously unresolved
structures, including a high pressure feature to the north of the BCG that
appears to arise from the bulk motion of Abell 1795's cool core. To the south
of the cool core, we find low temperature (~ 3 keV), diffuse ICM gas extending
for distances of ~ 50 kpc spatially coincident with previously identified
filaments of H-alpha emission. Gas at similar temperatures is also detected in
adjacent regions without any H-alpha emission. The X-ray gas coincident with
the H-alpha filament has been measured to be cooling spectroscopically at a
rate of ~ 1 Solar Masses/ yr, consistent with measurements of the star
formation rate in this region as inferred from UV observations, suggesting that
the star formation in this filament as inferred by its H and UV
emission can trace its origin to the rapid cooling of dense, X-ray emitting
gas. The H-alpha filament is not a unique site of cooler ICM, however, as ICM
at similar temperatures and even higher metallicities not cospatial with
H emission is observed just to the west of the H-alpha filament,
suggesting that it may have been uplifted by Abell 1795's central active
galaxy. Further simulations of cool core sloshing and AGN feedback operating in
concert with one another will be necessary to understand how such a dynamic
cool core region may have originated and why the H-alpha emission is so
localized with respect to the cool X-ray gas despite the evidence for a
catastrophic cooling flow.Comment: 14 Pages, 10 Figures, Resubmitted to ApJ after first referee report,
Higher Resolution Figures available upon reques
Chandra Observations of the Gravitationally Lensed System 2016+112
An observation of the gravitationally lensed system 2016+112 with the Chandra
X-ray Observatory has resolved a mystery regarding the proposed presence of a
dark matter object in the lens plane of this system. The Chandra ACIS
observation has clearly detected the lensed images of 2016+112 with positions
in good agreement with those reported in the optical and also detects 13
additional X-ray sources within a radius of 3.5 arcmin. Previous X-ray
observations in the direction of 2016+112 with the ROSAT HRI and ASCA SIS have
interpreted the X-ray data as arising from extended emission from a dark
cluster. However, the present Chandra observation can account for all the X-ray
emission as originating from the lensed images and additional point X-ray
sources in the field. Thus cluster parameters based on previous X-ray
observations are unreliable. We estimate an upper limit on the mass-to-light
ratio within a radius of 800 h_(50)^(-1) kpc of M/L_(V) < 190 h_(50)
(M/L_(V))_Sun. The lensed object is quite unusual, with reported narrow
emission lines in the optical that suggest it may be a type-2 quasar (Yamada
et. al. 1999). Our modeling of the X-ray spectrum of the lensed object implies
that the column density of an intrinsic absorber must lie between 3 and 85 x
10^22 cm^-2 (3 sigma confidence level). The 2-10 keV luminosity of the lensed
object, corrected for the lens magnification effect and using the above range
of intrinsic absorption, is 3 x 10^43 - 1.4 x 10^44 erg/s.Comment: 9 pages, includes 2 figures, Accepted for publication in ApJ
Detection of x-rays from galaxy groups associated with the gravitationally lensed systems PG 1115+080 and B1422+231
Gravitational lenses that produce multiple images of background quasars can
be an invaluable cosmological tool. Deriving cosmological parameters, however,
requires modeling the potential of the lens itself. It has been estimated that
up to a quarter of lensing galaxies are associated with a group or cluster
which perturbs the gravitational potential. Detection of X-ray emission from
the group or cluster can be used to better model the lens. We report on the
first detection in X-rays of the group associated with the lensing system PG
1115+080 and the first X-ray image of the group associated with the system
B1422+231. We find a temperature and rest-frame luminosity of 0.8 +/- 0.1 keV
and 7 +/- 2 x 10^{42} ergs/s for PG 1115+080 and 1.0 +infty/-0.3 keV and 8 +/-
3 x 10^{42} ergs/s for B1422+231. We compare the spatial and spectral
characteristics of the X-ray emission to the properties of the group galaxies,
to lens models, and to the general properties of groups at lower redshift.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 17 pages, 5 figures. Minor changes
to tex
The Evolution of Structure in X-ray Clusters of Galaxies
Using Chandra archival data, we quantify the evolution of cluster morphology
with redshift. Clusters form and grow through mergers with other clusters and
groups, and the amount of substructure in clusters in the present epoch and how
quickly it evolves with redshift depend on the underlying cosmology. Our sample
includes 40 X-ray selected, luminous clusters from the Chandra archive, and we
quantify cluster morphology using the power ratio method (Buote & Tsai 1995).
The power ratios are constructed from the moments of the X-ray surface
brightness and are related to a cluster's dynamical state. We find that, as
expected qualitatively from hierarchical models of structure formation,
high-redshift clusters have more substructure and are dynamically more active
than low-redshift clusters. Specifically, the clusters with z>0.5 have
significantly higher average third and fourth order power ratios than the lower
redshift clusters. Of the power ratios, is the most unambiguous
indicator of an asymmetric cluster structure, and the difference in
between the two samples remains significant even when the effects of noise and
other systematics are considered. After correcting for noise, we apply a linear
fit to versus redshift and find that the slope is greater than zero
at better than 99% confidence. This observation of structure evolution
indicates that dynamical state may be an important systematic effect in cluster
studies seeking to constrain cosmology, and when calibrated against numerical
simulations, structure evolution will itself provide interesting bounds on
cosmological models.Comment: 42 pages, 6 figures, ApJ accepted. For a version of the paper
containing an appendix with images of all of the clusters, see
http://www.ociw.edu/~tesla/structure.ps.g
The Spectra and Variability of X-ray Sources in a Deep Chandra Observation of the Galactic Center
We examine the X-ray spectra and variability of the sample of X-ray sources
with L_X = 10^{31}-10^{33} erg s^{-1} identified within the inner 9' of the
Galaxy. Very few of the sources exhibit intra-day or inter-month variations. We
find that the spectra of the point sources near the Galactic center are very
hard between 2--8 keV, even after accounting for absorption. When modeled as
power laws the median photon index is Gamma=0.7, while when modeled as thermal
plasma we can only obtain lower limits to the temperature of kT>8 keV. The
combined spectra of the point sources is similarly hard, with a photon index of
Gamma=0.8. Strong line emission is observed from low-ionization, He-like, and
H-like Fe, both in the average spectra and in the brightest individual sources.
The line ratios of the highly-ionized Fe in the average spectra are consistent
with emission from a plasma in thermal equilibrium. This line emission is
observed whether average spectra are examined as a function of the count rate
from the source, or as a function of the hardness ratios of individual sources.
This suggests that the hardness of the spectra may in fact to due local
absorption that partially-covers the X-ray emitting regions in the Galactic
center systems. We suggest that most of these sources are intermediate polars,
which (1) often exhibit hard spectra with prominent Fe lines, (2) rarely
exhibit either flares on short time scales or changes in their mean X-ray flux
on long time scales, and (3) are the most numerous hard X-ray sources with
comparable luminosities in the Galaxy.Comment: 27 pages, including 13 figures. To appear in ApJ, 1 October 2004,
v613 issue. An electronic version of table 2 is on
http://astro.ucla.edu/~mmuno/sgra/table2_electronic.txt and reduced data
files for each source are available on
http://www.astro.psu.edu/users/niel/galcen-xray-data/galcen-xray-data.htm
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