The deepest $Chandra$ view of RBS 797: evidence for two pairs of equidistant X-ray cavities

Abstract

We present the first results of a deep $Chandra$ observation of the galaxy cluster RBS 797, whose previous X-ray studies revealed two pronounced X-ray cavities in the east-west (E-W) direction. Follow-up VLA radio observations of the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) uncovered different jet and lobe orientations, with radio lobes filling the E-W cavities and perpendicular jets showing emission in the north-south (N-S) direction over the same scale ($\approx$30 kpc). With the new $\sim$427 ks total exposure, we report the detection of two additional, symmetric X-ray cavities in the N-S direction at nearly the same radial distance as the E-W ones. The newly discovered N-S cavities are associated with the radio emission detected at 1.4 GHz and 4.8 GHz in archival VLA data, making RBS 797 the first galaxy cluster found to have four equidistant, centrally-symmetric, radio-filled cavities. We derive the dynamical and radiative ages of the four cavities from X-ray and radio data, respectively, finding that the two outbursts are approximately coeval, with an age difference of $⪅$10 Myr between the E-W and N-S cavities. We discuss two scenarios for the origin of the two perpendicular, equidistant cavity systems: either the presence of a binary AGN which is excavating coeval pairs of cavities in perpendicular directions, or a fast ($<$10 Myr) jet reorientation event which produced subsequent, misaligned outbursts.

14 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in ApJL

References in corpus (20)

• Array Programming with NumPy
• The NumPy array: a structure for efficient numerical computation
• Heating Hot Atmospheres with Active Galactic Nuclei
• Raining on black holes and massive galaxies: the top-down multiphase condensation model
• X-ray cavities in a sample of 83 SPT-selected clusters of galaxies: Tracing the evolution of AGN feedback in clusters of galaxies out to z=1.2
• Linking Macro, Meso, and Micro Scales in Multiphase AGN Feeding and Feedback
• A Very Deep Chandra Observation of the Galaxy Group NGC 5813: AGN Shocks, Feedback, and Outburst History
• Feedback from Active Galactic Nuclei in Galaxy Groups
• Gentle re-energisation of electrons in merging galaxy clusters
• Cycling of the powerful AGN in MS 0735.6+7421 and the duty cycle of radio AGN in Clusters
• GMRT observations of X-shaped radio sources
• Constraining the Nature of X-ray Cavities in Clusters and Galaxies
• Galaxy cluster mass profiles
• X-ray Detection of the Proto Supermassive Binary Black Hole at the Centre of Abell 400
• Constraining the AGN duty cycle in the cool-core cluster MS 0735.6+7421 with LOFAR data
• Evidence of AGN feedback and sloshing in the X-ray luminous NGC 1550 galaxy group
• Particle acceleration in radio galaxies with flickering jets: GeV electrons to ultrahigh energy cosmic rays
• Multifrequency JVLA observations of the X-shaped radio galaxy in Abell 3670
• Thermally Unstable Cooling Stimulated by Uplift: The Spoiler Clusters
• Discovery of a Powerful >10^61 erg AGN Outburst in Distant Galaxy Cluster SPT-CLJ0528-5300

Cited by in corpus (13)

• Recent Progress in Modeling the Macro- and Micro-Physics of Radio Jet Feedback in Galaxy Clusters
• A unique, ring-like radio source with quadrilateral structure detected with machine learning
• Multiple shock fronts in RBS 797: the Chandra window on shock heating in galaxy clusters
• Misaligned magnetized accretion flows onto spinning black holes: Magneto-spin alignment, outflow power, and intermittent jets
• Halo Scaling Relations and Hydrostatic Mass Bias in the Simba Simulation From Realistic Mock X-ray Catalogues
• New filamentary remnant radio emission and duty cycle constraints in the radio galaxy NGC 6086
• Detection of a radio-filled X-ray cavity within the interstellar medium of NGC 5141
• The Multi-Epoch Jet Outbursts in Abell 496: synchrotron ageing and buoyant X-ray cavities draped by warm gas filaments
• X-ray investigation of the remarkable galaxy group Nest200047
• Investigating AGN feedback in H$\alpha$-luminous galaxy clusters: first Chandra X-ray analysis of Abell 2009
• Evidence of sloshing-driven mini-halo formation in the cool-core cluster RXCJ1558.3-1410
• Testing the Limits of AGN Feedback and the Onset of Thermal Instability in the Most Rapidly Star Forming Brightest Cluster Galaxies
• Bridging Bondi and Event Horizon Scales: 3D GRMHD Simulations Reveal X-Shaped Radio Galaxy Morphology