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Chandra X-ray Image of Abell 1689
Abell 1689 is a massive cluster of galaxies located about 2.3 billion light years away. The Chandra image, which shows hundred-million-degree gas, has been used to provide new evidence for an ongoing merger of two smaller clusters to form this system. The X-ray emission has a smooth appearance, unlike other merging systems such as the Bullet Cluster or MACS J0025.4-1222. The temperature pattern across Abell 1689 is more complicated, however, possibly requiring multiple structures with different temperatures.
(Credit: NASA/CXC/MIT/E.-H Peng et al;)
Abell 1689 is a massive cluster of galaxies located about 2.3 billion light years away. The Chandra image, which shows hundred-million-degree gas, has been used to provide new evidence for an ongoing merger of two smaller clusters to form this system. The X-ray emission has a smooth appearance, unlike other merging systems such as the Bullet Cluster or MACS J0025.4-1222. The temperature pattern across Abell 1689 is more complicated, however, possibly requiring multiple structures with different temperatures.
(Credit: NASA/CXC/MIT/E.-H Peng et al;)
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Hubble Optical Image of Abell 1689
This optical image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows long arcs caused by gravitational lensing of background galaxies by matter in the galaxy cluster. Further studies of this cluster are needed to explain the lack of agreement between mass estimates based on the X-ray data and on the gravitational lensing. Previous work suggests that filament-like structures of galaxies are located near Abell 1689 along our line-of-sight to this cluster, which may bias mass estimates using gravitational lensing.
(Credit: NASA/STScI)
This optical image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows long arcs caused by gravitational lensing of background galaxies by matter in the galaxy cluster. Further studies of this cluster are needed to explain the lack of agreement between mass estimates based on the X-ray data and on the gravitational lensing. Previous work suggests that filament-like structures of galaxies are located near Abell 1689 along our line-of-sight to this cluster, which may bias mass estimates using gravitational lensing.
(Credit: NASA/STScI)
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Full Field X-ray/Optical Composite of Abell 1689
These images of Abell 1689 offer full-field views of the data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory (purple) and the Hubble Space Telescope (yellow). The X-ray emission indicates this system is actually the result of two smaller clusters in the process of merging. The long arcs in the optical image are caused by gravitational lensing of the background galaxies by matter in the galaxy cluster. Further studies of this cluster are needed to explain the lack of agreement between mass estimates based on the X-ray data and on the gravitational lensing.
(Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/MIT/E.-H Peng et al; Optical: NASA/STScI)
These images of Abell 1689 offer full-field views of the data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory (purple) and the Hubble Space Telescope (yellow). The X-ray emission indicates this system is actually the result of two smaller clusters in the process of merging. The long arcs in the optical image are caused by gravitational lensing of the background galaxies by matter in the galaxy cluster. Further studies of this cluster are needed to explain the lack of agreement between mass estimates based on the X-ray data and on the gravitational lensing.
(Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/MIT/E.-H Peng et al; Optical: NASA/STScI)
Return to Abell 1689 (September 11, 2008)
Revised: December 01, 2022