Astronomy:MAssive Cluster Survey

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MAssive Cluster Survey

The MAssive Cluster Survey (MACS)[1][2] compiled and characterized a sample of very X-ray luminous (and thus, by inference, massive), distant clusters of galaxies. The sample comprises 124 spectroscopically confirmed clusters at 0.3 < z < 0.7. Candidates were selected from the ROSAT All-Sky Survey data.[3]

Cluster candidates that are south of declination -40° cannot be observed from Mauna Kea and fit into the Southern MACS (SMACS) extension. They are also being investigated when facilities are available.[4]

History

One of the galaxy clusters, MACS J0647+7015 was found to have gravitationally lensed the most distant galaxy (MACS0647-JD) then ever imaged, in 2012, by CLASH. The first statistical study of X-ray cavities in distant clusters of galaxies was performed by analyzing the Chandra X-ray observations of MACS. Out of 76 clusters representing a sample of the most luminous X-ray clusters, observers found 13 cut and clear cavities and 7 possible cavities. A new radio halo, as well as a relic applicant, were found in MACS, with the help of the Giant Meterwave Radio Telescope and the Karoo Array Telescope-7. The discovered radio halo has a largest linear scale of about 0.9Mpc. X-ray chosen clusters are almost free of projection effects because they are composed of intrinsically massive, gravitationally collapsed systems.

MACS team

The MACS team consists of:

Survey notation

Objects are labelled as JHHMM.m+DDMM where HHMM+DDMM are the coordinates in the J2000 system. Here H, D, and M refer to hours, degrees, and minutes, respectively, and m refers to tenths of minutes of time.

  • HH Hours of right ascension
  • MM.m Minutes of right ascension or declination
  • DD.d Degrees in declination

Southern MAssive Cluster Survey

The Southern MAssive Cluster Survey (SMACS) involved the Hubble Space Telescope.

Notable surveyed objects

Survey object Right ascension Declination Notes
MACS J0025.4-1222  00h 25.4m −12° 22′
MACS J0358.8-2955  03h 58.8m −29.5° Part of Abell 3192[5]
MACS J0416.1-2403  04h 16m 9.9s −24° 03′ 58″
MACS J0647+7015  06h 47m +70° 15′
MACS J0717.5+3745  07h 17.5m +37° 45′
SMACS J0723.3–7327  07h 23m −73° 27′ Subject of first JWST deep field
MACS J1149 Lensed Star 1  11h 49m 35.59s 22° 23′ 47.4″ Blue supergiant star observed through a gravitational lens
MACS 1423-z7p64  14h 23m 24° 04′ Most distant galaxy known as of April 2017
MACS 2129-1  21h 29m −1°

References

  1. Ebeling, Harald; Alastair Edge; J. Patrick Henry (2001). "MACS: A Quest for the Most Massive Galaxy Clusters in the Universe". Astrophysical Journal 553 (2): 668. doi:10.1086/320958. Bibcode2001ApJ...553..668E. 
  2. Ebeling, Harald; Elizabeth Barrett; David Donovan; Cheng-Jiun Ma; Alastair Edge; Leon van Speybroeck (2007). "A Complete Sample of 12 Very X-Ray Luminous Galaxy Clusters at z > 0.5". Astrophysical Journal Letters 661 (661): 33. doi:10.1086/518603. Bibcode2007ApJ...661L..33E. 
  3. MAssive Cluster Survey (MACS)
  4. Repp, A; Ebeling, H (2018-09-01). "Science from a glimpse: Hubble SNAPshot observations of massive galaxy clusters". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 479 (1): 844–864. doi:10.1093/mnras/sty1489. ISSN 0035-8711. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty1489. 
  5. NASA: Hubble Views a Double Cluster of Glowing Galaxies

External links