The X-ray View of Abell 3120
Mark Henriksen, Alexis Finoguenov

TL;DR
This study analyzes Chandra X-ray data of Abell 3120, confirming it as a poor galaxy cluster with complex thermal and non-thermal emission components, and explores its structure and environment.
Contribution
The paper provides a detailed X-ray analysis of Abell 3120, clarifying its nature and emission characteristics, and evaluates competing hypotheses about its origin.
Findings
X-ray emission extends beyond the central galaxy by 158 kpc
Spectrum modeling excludes purely non-thermal emission
Evidence suggests a thermal plus possibly non-thermal emission component
Abstract
Identification of Abell 3120 as a galaxy cluster has recently been questioned with alternative suggestions including: a fossil remnant of a group merger, non-thermal emission from a radio galaxy, and projected emission from of a filamentary string of galaxies. We report on our analysis of the Chandra observation and evaluate these hypotheses based on our results. Abell 3120 shows X-ray emission extending 158 kpc, well beyond the central galaxy. The spatial distribution of X-rays in the core more closely follows the radio emission showing a jet-like structure extending to the north that is misaligned with the stellar light distribution of the central galaxy. At larger radii the X-ray emission is aligned with the SE-NW running axis of the galaxy distribution in the cluster core. Modeling the X-ray spectrum excludes purely non-thermal emission. The emission weighted temperature is 1.93 -…
Peer Reviews
No public reviews on file for this paper yet. If you reviewed it on a platform where reviews are public (OpenReview, ICLR, NeurIPS, ICML), you can paste yours below so the community can read it here.
Videos
No videos yet. Explain this paper in a talk, walkthrough, or lecture? Add one.
Taxonomy
TopicsGalaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena · Astronomy and Astrophysical Research · Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations
