We demonstrate a novel technique for calibrating the energy scale of the EPIC-pn detector on XMM-Newton, which allows us to measure bulk flows in the intracluster medium (ICM) of the Perseus and Coma galaxy clusters. The procedure uses the fluorescent instrumental background lines present in all observations, in particular, Cu-Kalpha. By studying their spatial and temporal variations, in addition to incorporating calibration observations, we refined the absolute energy scale of the detector to better than 150km/s at the Fe-K line, a large improvement over the nominal calibration accuracy of 550km/s. With our calibration, we mapped the bulk motions over much of the central 1200 and 800kpc of Perseus and Coma, respectively, in spatial regions down to 65 and 140kpc size. We cross-checked our procedure by comparing our measurements with those found in Perseus by Hitomi for an overlapping 65 kpc square region, finding consistent results. For Perseus, there is a relative line-of-sight velocity increase of 480+/-210km/s (1sigma) at a radius of 250kpc east of the nucleus. This region is associated with a cold front, providing direct evidence of the ICM sloshing in the cluster potential well. Assuming the intrinsic distribution of bulk motions is Gaussian, its width is 214+/-85km/s, excluding systematic uncertainties. Removing the sloshing region, this is reduced to 20-150km/s, which is similar in magnitude to the Hitomi line width measurements in undisturbed regions. In Coma, the line-of-sight velocity of the ICM varies between the velocities of the two central galaxies. Maps of the gas velocity and metallicity provide clues about the merger history of the Coma, with material to the north and east of the cluster core having a velocity similar to NGC 4874, while that to the south and west has velocities close to NGC 4889. Our results highlight the difference between a merging system, such as Coma, where we observe a ~1000 km/s range in velocity, and a relatively relaxed system, such as Perseus, with much weaker bulk motions.
Improving the capabilities of detecting faint X-ray sources is fundamental to increase the statistics on faint high-z AGN and star-forming galaxies. We performed a simultaneous Maximum Likelihood PSF fit in the [0.5-2]keV and [2-7]keV energy bands of the 4Ms Chandra Deep Field South (CDFS) data at the position of the 34930 CANDELS H-band selected galaxies. For each detected source we provide X-ray photometry and optical counterpart validation. We validated this technique by means of a raytracing simulation. We detected a total of 698 X-ray point-sources with a likelihood L>4.98 (i.e.> 2.7{sigma}). We show that the prior knowledge of a deep sample of Optical-NIR galaxies leads to a significant increase of the detection of faint (i.e. ~10^-17^cgs in the [0.5-2]keV band) sources with respect to "blind" X-ray detections. By including previous catalogs, this work increases the total number of X-ray sources detected in the 4Ms CDFS, CANDELS area to 793, which represents the largest sample of extremely faint X-ray sources assembled to date. Our results suggest that a large fraction of the optical counterparts of our X-ray sources determined by likelihood ratio actually coincides with the priors used for the source detection. Most of th e new detected sources are likely star-forming galaxies or faint absorbed AGN. We identified a few sources sources with putative photometric redshift z>4. Despite the low number statistics, this sample significantly increases the number of X-ray selected candidate high-z AGN.
We report the results of a new survey of massive, OB stars throughout the Carina Nebula using the X-ray point source catalog provided by the Chandra Carina Complex Project (CCCP) in conjunction with infrared (IR) photometry from the Two Micron All-Sky Survey and the Spitzer Space Telescope Vela-Carina survey. Mid-IR photometry is relatively unaffected by extinction, hence it provides strong constraints on the luminosities of OB stars, assuming that their association with the Carina Nebula, and hence their distance, is confirmed. We fit model stellar atmospheres to the optical (UBV) and IR spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of 182 OB stars with known spectral types and measure the bolometric luminosity and extinction for each star. Using X-ray emission as a strong indicator of association with Carina, we identify 94 candidate OB stars with L_bol_>~10^4^L_{sun}_ by fitting their IR SEDs. If the candidate OB stars are eventually confirmed by follow-up spectroscopic observations, the number of cataloged OB stars in the Carina Nebula will increase by ~50%.
Massive O-type and early B-type (OB) stars in the nearby Galaxy remain incompletely cataloged due to high extinction, bright visible and infrared nebular emission in H II regions, and high field star contamination. These difficulties are alleviated by restricting the search to stars with X-ray emission. Using the X-ray point sources from the Massive Young Star-forming Complex Study in Infrared and X-Rays (MYStIX) survey of OB-dominated regions, we identify 98 MYStIX candidate OB (MOBc) stars by fitting their 1-8{mu}m spectral energy distributions (SEDs) with reddened stellar atmosphere models. We identify 27 additional MOBc stars based on JHK_S_ photometry of X-ray stars lacking SED fitting. These candidate OB stars indicate that the current census of stars earlier than B1, taken across the 18 MYStIX regions studied, is less than 50% complete. We also fit the SEDs of 239 previously published OB stars to measure interstellar extinction and bolometric luminosities, revealing six candidate massive binary systems and five candidate O-type (super)giants. As expected, candidate OB stars have systematically higher extinction than previously published OB stars. Notable results for individual regions include identification of the OB population of a recently discovered massive cluster in NGC 6357, an older OB association in the M17 complex, and new massive luminous O stars near the Trifid Nebula. In several relatively poorly studied regions (RCW 38, NGC 6334, NGC 6357, Trifid, and NGC 3576), the OB populations may increase by factors of 2.
IRAS 09002-4732 is a poorly studied embedded cluster of stars in the Vela Molecular Ridge at a distance of 1.7 kpc. Deep observations with the Chandra X-ray Observatory, combined with existing optical and infrared surveys, produce a catalog of 441 probable pre-main-sequence members of the region. The stellar spatial distribution has two components: most stars reside in a rich, compact, elliptical cluster, but a minority reside within a molecular filament several parsecs long that straddles the cluster. The filament has active distributed star formation with dozens of unclustered protostars. The cluster pre-main-sequence population is =<0.8 Myr old and deeply embedded; its most massive member is extremely young, producing an ultracompact H II region. The cluster total population deduced from the X-ray luminosity function is surprisingly rich, twice that of the Orion Nebula Cluster. The cluster core is remarkably dense where strong N-body interactions should be occurring; its initial mass function may be deficient in massive stars. We infer that IRAS 09002-4732 is a rare case where a rich cluster is forming today in a molecular filament, consistent with astrophysical models of cluster formation in clouds that involve the hierarchical formation and merging of groups in molecular filaments.
The CMa R1 star-forming region contains several compact clusters as well as many young early-B stars. It is associated with a well-known bright rimmed nebula, the nature of which is unclear (fossil HII region or supernova remnant). To help elucidate the nature of the nebula, our goal was to reconstruct the star-formation history of the CMa R1 region, including the previously unknown older, fainter low-mass stellar population, using X-rays. We analyzed images obtained with the ROSAT satellite, covering ~5deg^2^. Complementary VRI photometry was performed with the Gemini South telescope. Colour-magnitude and colour-colour diagrams were used in conjunction with pre-main sequence evolutionary tracks to derive the masses and ages of the X-ray sources.
The Chandra Carina Complex contains 200 known O- and B-type stars. The Chandra survey detected 68 of the 70 O stars and 61 of 127 known B0-B3 stars. We have assembled a publicly available optical/X-ray database to identify OB stars that depart from the canonical L_X/L_bol relation or whose average X-ray temperatures exceed 1keV. Among the single O stars with high kT we identify two candidate magnetically confined wind shock sources: Tr16-22, O8.5 V, and LS 1865, O8.5 V((f)). The O4 III(fc) star HD 93250 exhibits strong, hard, variable X-rays, suggesting that it may be a massive binary with a period of >30d. The visual O2 If* binary HD 93129A shows soft 0.6keV and hard 1.9keV emission components, suggesting embedded wind shocks close to the O2 If* Aa primary and colliding wind shocks between Aa and Ab. Of the 11 known O-type spectroscopic binaries, the long orbital-period systems HD 93343, HD 93403, and QZ Car have higher shock temperatures than short-period systems such as HD 93205 and FO 15. Although the X-rays from most B stars may be produced in the coronae of unseen, low-mass pre-main-sequence companions, a dozen B stars with high L_X_ cannot be explained by a distribution of unseen companions. One of these, SS73 24 in the Treasure Chest cluster, is a new candidate Herbig Be star.
We present high-resolution X-ray proper-motion measurements of Cassiopeia A using Chandra X-Ray Observatory observations from 2000 and 2002. We separate the emission into four spectrally distinct classes: Si-dominated, Fe-dominated, low-energy-enhanced, and continuum-dominated. These classes also represent distinct spatial and kinematic components.
We present CAIXA, a Catalogue of AGN In the XMM-Newton Archive. It consists of all the radio-quiet X-ray unobscured (N_H_<2x10^22^cm^-2^) active galactic nuclei (AGN) observed by XMM-Newton in targeted observations, whose data are public as of March 2007. With its 156 sources, this is the largest catalogue of high signal-to-noise X-ray spectra of AGN. All the EPIC pn spectra of the sources in CAIXA were extracted homogeneously, and a baseline model was applied in order to derive their basic X-ray properties. These data are complemented by multiwavelength data found in the literature: black hole masses, full width half maximum (FWHM) of H{beta}, radio and optical fluxes.
The Chandra archival data is a valuable resource for various studies on different X-ray astronomy topics. In this paper, we utilize this wealth of information and present a uniformly processed data set, which can be used to address a wide range of scientific questions. The data analysis procedures are applied to 10029 Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer observations, which produces 363530 source detections belonging to 217828 distinct X-ray sources. This number is twice the size of the Chandra Source Catalog (Version 1.1). The catalogs in this paper provide abundant estimates of the detected X-ray source properties, including source positions, counts, colors, fluxes, luminosities, variability statistics, etc. Cross-correlation of these objects with galaxies shows that 17828 sources are located within the D_25_ isophotes of 1110 galaxies, and 7504 sources are located between the D_25_ and 2D_25_ isophotes of 910 galaxies. Contamination analysis with the log N-log S relation indicates that 51.3% of objects within 2D_25_ isophotes are truly relevant to galaxies, and the "net" source fraction increases to 58.9%, 67.3%, and 69.1% for sources with luminosities above 10^37^, 10^38^, and 10^39^erg/s, respectively. Among the possible scientific uses of this catalog, we discuss the possibility of studying intra-observation variability, inter-observation variability, and supersoft sources (SSSs). About 17092 detected sources above 10 counts are classified as variable in individual observation with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) criterion (P_K-S_<0.01). There are 99647 sources observed more than once and 11843 sources observed 10 times or more, offering us a wealth of data with which to explore the long-term variability. There are 1638 individual objects (~2350 detections) classified as SSSs. As a quite interesting subclass, detailed studies on X-ray spectra and optical spectroscopic follow-up are needed to categorize these SSSs and pinpoint their properties. In addition, this survey can enable a wide range of statistical studies, such as X-ray activity in different types of stars, X-ray luminosity functions in different types of galaxies, and multi-wavelength identification and classification of different X-ray populations.