2006/06/28 by Sebastian Heinz, S. Heinz, M. Brüggen +5
Physics and Astronomy · #Active galactic nucleus #Astronomy #Astrophysics #Astrophysics and Cosmic Phenomena #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Cluster (spacecraft) #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Galaxy #Galaxy cluster #Geology #Geometry #Intracluster medium #Isotropy #Jet (fluid) #Mechanics #Optics #Physics #Rotation (mathematics) #Rotational symmetry #Shear (geology) #Virgo Cluster #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/j.1745-3933.2006.00243.x
published as Mon.Not.Roy.Astron.Soc.Lett. 373 (2006) L65-L69 · 5 Pages, 5 figures, submitted to MNRAS Letters
arxiv created 2006/06/28 · openalex publication_date 2006/10/31 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2020/11/23 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Abstract We present numerical simulations investigating the interaction of active galactic nucleus jets with galaxy clusters, for the first time taking into account the dynamic nature of the cluster gas and detailed cluster physics. The simulations successfully reproduce the observed morphologies of radio sources in clusters. We find that cluster inhomogeneities and large-scale flows have a significant impact on the morphology of the radio source and cannot be ignored a priori when investigating radio source dynamics. Morphological comparison suggests that the gas in the centres of clusters like Virgo and Abell 4059 shows significant shear and/or rotation. We find that shear and rotation in the intracluster medium move large amounts of cold material back into the path of the jet, ensuring that subsequent jet outbursts encounter a sufficient column density of gas to couple with the inner cluster gas, thus alleviating the problem of evacuated channels discussed in the recent literature. The same effects redistribute the excess energy ΔE deposited by the jet, making the distribution of ΔE at late times consistent with being isotropic.