A wide Chandra view of the core of the Perseus cluster

Abstract

We present new Chandra images of the X-ray emission from the core of the Perseus cluster of galaxies. The total observation time is now 1.4Ms. New depressions in X-ray surface brightness are discovered to the north of NGC1275, which we interpret as old rising bubbles. They imply that bubbles are long-lived and do not readily breakup when rising in the hot cluster atmosphere. The existence of a 300kpc long NNW-SSW bubble axis means there cannot be significant transverse large-scale flows exceeding 100kms-1. Interesting spatial correlations are seen along that axis in early deep radio maps. A semicircular cold front about 100kpc west of the nucleus is seen. It separates an inner disturbed region dominated by the activity of the active nucleus of NGC1275 from the outer region where a subcluster merger dominates. © 2011 The Authors Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society © 2011 RAS.