1997/03/28 by Philippe Fischer, J. A. Tyson, J. Anthony Tyson · 5 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics #Cluster (spacecraft) #Dark matter #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Galaxy #Galaxy cluster #Gravitational lens #Mass distribution #Physics #Redshift #Sigma #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Velocity dispersion #Weak gravitational lensing #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/118447
published as Astron.J. 114 (1997) 14 · 21 Pages LaTeX, AASTEX version 4 macros, Accepted for publication in the AJ. 8 of 12 figures included, full paper at http://www.astro.lsa.umich.edu:80/users/philf/www/papers/list.html
arxiv created 1997/03/28 · openalex publication_date 1997/07/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · arxiv updated 2016/08/30 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Galaxy cluster mass distribution are potentially useful probes of Omega0 and the nature of the dark matter. Large clusters will distort the observed shapes of background galaxies through gravitational lensing allowing the measurement of the cluster mass distributions. In this paper we describe weak statistical lensing measurements of the most luminous X-ray cluster known, RXJ1347.5-1145 at z=0.45. We detect a shear signal in the background galaxies at a signal-to-noise ratio of 7.5 in the radial range 120 <= r <= 1360 h(-1) kpc. A mass map of the cluster reveals an 11sigma peak in the cluster mass distribution consistent with the position of the central dominant galaxy and 3 sigma evidence for the presence of a subcluster at a projected radius of 1.3 - 1.7 h(-1) Mpc from the cluster center. In the range 120 <= r <= 1360 h(-1) kpc mass traces light, and the azimuthally averaged cluster mass and light profiles are consistent with singular isothermal spheres with M(r<1 Mpc) = 1.7 +/- 0.4 x 10(15) Msun. Assuming an isotropic velocity distribution function, the implied velocity dispersion is sigma = 1500 +/- 160 km s(-1) . The rest-frame mass-to-light ratio is M/LB = 200 +/- 50 h Msun/L<SUB>Bsun</SUB>. The lensing mass estimate is almost twice as high as a previously determined X-ray mass estimate.