A radio bridge connecting the minihalo and phoenix in the Abell 85 cluster

Abstract

ABSTRACT Galaxy clusters are located at the nodes of cosmic filaments and therefore host a lot of hydrodynamical activity. However, cool core clusters are considered to be relatively relaxed systems without much merging activity. The Abell 85 cluster is a unique example where the cluster hosts both a cool core and multiple ongoing merging processes. In this work, we used 700 MHz uGMRT as well as MeerKAT L-band observations, carried out as part of the MeerKAT Galaxy Cluster Legacy Survey (MGCLS), of the Abell 85. We reconfirm the presence of a minihalo in the cluster centre at 700 MHz that was recently discovered in MGCLS. Furthermore, we discovered a radio bridge connecting the central minihalo and the peripheral radio phoenix. The mean surface brightness, size, and flux density of the bridge at 700 MHz are found to be ∼0.14 µJy arcsec−2, ∼220 kpc, and ∼4.88 mJy, respectively, with a spectral index of $\alpha _{700}^{1.28} = -0.92$. Although the origin of the seed relativistic electrons is still unknown, turbulent reacceleration caused by both the spiralling sloshing gas in the intracluster medium and the post-shock turbulence from the outgoing merging shock associated with the phoenix formation may be responsible for the bridge.