A rare case of FR I interaction with a hot X-ray bridge in the A2384 galaxy cluster

TL;DR

This study investigates the interaction between an FR I radio galaxy and a hot X-ray bridge in the A2384 galaxy cluster, revealing how radio jets influence the intra-cluster medium during a post-merger event.

Contribution

It presents the first detailed analysis of an FR I radio galaxy interacting with a hot X-ray filament in a merging galaxy cluster, combining radio and X-ray observations.

Findings

Radio lobes are interacting with the hot X-ray bridge.

The radio lobe influences the thermal properties of the plasma.

Asymmetry in radio lobe size and luminosity was observed.

Abstract

Clusters of varying mass ratios can merge and the process significantly disturbs the cluster environments and alters their global properties. Active radio galaxies are another phenomenon that can also affect cluster environments. Radio jets can interact with the intra-cluster medium (ICM) and locally affect its properties. Abell~2384 (hereafter A2384) is a unique system that has a dense, hot X-ray filament or bridge connecting the two unequal mass clusters A2384(N) and A2384(S). The analysis of its morphology suggests that A2384 is a post-merger system where A2384(S) has already interacted with the A2384(N), and as a result hot gas has been stripped over a ~ 1 Mpc region between the two bodies. We have obtained its 325 MHz GMRT data, and we detected a peculiar FR I type radio galaxy which is a part of the A2384(S). One of its radio lobes interacts with the hot X-ray bridge and pushes the hot gas in the opposite direction. This results in displacement in the bridge close to A2384(S). Based on Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray observations, we notice a temperature and entropy enhancement at the radio lobe-X-ray plasma interaction site, which further suggests that the radio lobe is changing thermal plasma properties. We have also studied the radio properties of the FR I radio galaxy, and found that the size and radio luminosity of the interacting north lobe of the FR I galaxy are lower than those of the accompanying south lobe.