The inner gas mass–temperature profile in the core of nearby galaxy clusters

Abstract

ABSTRACT We present a mass–temperature profile of gas within the central 10 kpc of a small sample of cool core clusters. The mass of the hottest gas phases, at 1.5 and 0.7 keV, is determined from X-ray spectra from the XMM Reflection Grating Spectrometers. The masses of the partially ionized atomic and the molecular phases are obtained from published H α and CO measurements. We find that the mass of gas at 0.7 keV in a cluster is remarkably similar to that of the molecular gas. Assuming pressure equilibrium between the phases, this means that they occupy volumes differing by 105. The molecular gas is located within the H α nebula which is often filamentary and coincides radially and in position angle with the soft X-ray emitting gas.