Related papers: The Astrophysics of the Intracluster Plasma
[abridged] The equilibria of the intracluster plasma (ICP) and of the gravitationally dominant dark matter (DM) are governed by the hydrostatic and the Jeans equation. Jeans, with the DM `entropy' set to K ~ r^\alpha and \alpha ~ 1.25 - 1.3…
The X-ray emission from clusters of galaxies is one of the best observational probe to investigate the distribution of dark matter at intermediate and high redshifts. Since the disposition of the intracluster plasma (ICP) responsible of the…
We take up from a library of 12 galaxy clusters featuring extended X-ray observations of their Intra Cluster Plasma (ICP), analyzed with our entropy-based Supermodel. Its few intrinsic parameters - basically, the central level and the outer…
To predict the X-ray observables associated to the diffuse baryons in clusters of galaxies, we develop a new physical approach to model such a hot intra-cluster plasma. Such approach is based on punctuated equilibria. and comprises the…
In galaxy clusters the entropy distribution of the IntraCluster Plasma modulates the latter's equilibrium within the Dark Matter gravitational wells, as rendered by our Supermodel. We argue the entropy production at the boundary shocks to…
Clusters of galaxies are the largest organized structures in the Universe. They are important cosmological probes, since they are large enough to contain a fair sample of the materials in the Universe, but small enough to have achieved…
We point out that two problems of observational cosmology, the facts i) that > 60% of the baryonic content of the universe is not observed at z=0 and ii) that the properties of small clusters do not agree with simple expectations, could be…
The most massive baryonic component of galaxy clusters is the "intracluster medium" (ICM), a diffuse, hot, weakly magnetized plasma that is most easily observed in the X-ray band. Despite being observed for decades, the macroscopic…
The overcooling of cool core clusters is a persistent puzzle in the astrophysics of galaxy clusters. We propose that it may naturally be resolved via interactions between the baryons of the intracluster medium (ICM) and its dark matter…
Galaxy clusters are the largest and most massive bound objects resulting from cosmic hierarchical structure formation. Baryons account for somewhat more than 10% of that mass, with roughly 90% of the baryonic matter distributed throughout…
The Intra-Cluster Medium (ICM) is a rarefied, hot, highly ionized, metal rich, weakly magnetized plasma. In these proceeding, after having reviewed some basic ICM properties, I discuss recent results obtained with the BeppoSAX, XMM-Newton…
We present a multi-wavelength analysis of the four most relaxed clusters in the South Pole Telescope 2500 deg^2 survey, which lie at 0.55 < z < 0.75. This study, which utilizes new, deep data from Chandra and Hubble, along with ground-based…
Clusters of galaxies are studied from a theoretical point of view, comparing with observational results whenever possible. The problem is approached both analytically as well as by means of high-resoultion numerical simulations. The dark…
Clusters of galaxies are thought to contain about ten times as much dark matter as baryonic matter. The dark component therefore dominates the gravitational potential of the cluster, and the baryons confined by this potential radiate X-rays…
Clusters of galaxies can be seen as giant astrophysical laboratories enclosing matter in a large enough volume, so that the matter composition can be taken as representing the composition of our Universe. X-ray observations allow a very…
Recently, high-resolution Chandra observations revealed the existence of very sharp features in the X-ray surface brightness and temperature maps of several clusters (Vikhlinin et. al., 2001). These features, called ``cold fronts'', are…
X-ray observations indicate that non-gravitational processes play a key role in determining the distribution of the diffuse, X-ray emitting gas in clusters of galaxies (ICM). The effect of non-gravitational processes is imprinted in the ICM…
Studies of the X-ray surface brightness profiles of clusters, coupled with theoretical considerations, suggest that the breaking of self-similarity in the hot gas results from an `entropy floor', established by some heating process, which…
We have initiated a programme to study the physical/dynamical state of gas in galaxy clusters and the impact of the cluster environment on gaseous halos of individual galaxies using X-ray imaging and UV absorption line spectroscopy of…
The X-ray properties of a relaxed cluster of galaxies are determined primarily by its gravitational potential well and the entropy distribution of its intracluster gas. That entropy distribution reflects both the accretion history of the…