Christopher R. Mullis

We present equivalent widths of the [O II]λ3727 and Hα nebular emission lines for 77 brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) selected from the 160 Square Degree ROSAT X-ray survey. We find no [O II]λ3727 or Hα emission stronger than –15 Å or –5 Å, respectively, in any BCG. The corresponding emission-line luminosities lie below L ~ 6 × 10⁴⁰ erg s^–1, which is a factor of 30 below that of NGC 1275 in the Perseus Cluster. A comparison to the detection frequency of nebular emission in BCGs at z 0.35 drawn from the Brightest Cluster Survey indicates that we should have detected roughly one dozen emission-line galaxies, assuming that the two surveys are selecting similar clusters in the X-ray luminosity range 10⁴² erg s^–1 to 5 × 10⁴⁴ erg s^–1. The absence of luminous nebular emission (i.e., Perseus-like systems) in our sample is consistent with an increase in the number density of strong cooling flow (cooling core) clusters between z = 0.5 and today. The decline in their numbers at higher redshift could be due to cluster mergers and heating by active galactic nuclei.

Context.X-ray surveys are a very efficient mean of detecting young stars and therefore allow us to study the young stellar population in the solar neighborhood and the local star formation history in the last billion of years.Aims.We want to study the young stellar population in the solar neighborhood, to constrain its spatial density and scale height as well as the recent local star formation history. Methods.We analyze the stellar content of the ROSAT North Ecliptic Pole survey, and compare the observations with the predictions derived from stellar galactic model. Since the ROSAT NEP survey is sensitive at intermediate fluxes is able to sample both the youngest stars and the intermediate age stars (younger than 109 years), linking the shallow and deep flux surveys already published in the literature. Results.We confirm the existence of an excess of yellow stars in our neighborhood previously seen in shallow survey, which is likely due to a young star population not accounted for in the model. However the excellent agreement between observations and predictions of dM stars casts some doubt on the real nature of this active population.

Astronomy & Astrophysics (A&A) is an international journal which publishes papers on all aspects of astronomy and astrophysics

We present a detailed description of the first direct measurement of the spatial correlation function of X-ray selected AGN. This result is based on an X-ray flux-limited sample of 219 AGN discovered in the contiguous 80.7 deg^2 region of the ROSAT North Ecliptic Pole (NEP) Survey. Clustering is detected at the 4 sigma level at comoving scales in the interval r = 5-60 h^-1 Mpc. Fitting the data with a power law of slope gamma=1.8, we find a correlation length of r_0 = 7.4 (+1.8, -1.9) h^-1 Mpc (Omega_M=0.3, Omega_Lambda=0.7). The median redshift of the AGN contributing to the signal is z_xi=0.22. This clustering amplitude implies that X-ray selected AGN are spatially distributed in a manner similar to that of optically selected AGN. Furthermore, the ROSAT NEP determination establishes the local behavior of AGN clustering, a regime which is poorly sampled in general. Combined with high-redshift measures from optical studies, the ROSAT NEP results argue that the AGN correlation strength essentially does not evolve with redshift, at least out to z~2.2. In the local Universe, X-ray selected AGN appear to be unbiased relative to galaxies and the inferred X-ray bias parameter is near unity, b_X~1. Hence X-ray selected AGN closely trace the underlying mass distribution. The ROSAT NEP AGN catalog, presented here, features complete optical identifications and spectroscopic redshifts. The median redshift, X-ray flux, and X-ray luminosity are z=0.41, f_X=1.1*10^-13 cgs, and L_X=9.2*10^43 h_70^-2 cgs (0.5-2.0 keV), respectively. Unobscured, type 1 AGN are the dominant constituents (90%) of this soft X-ray selected sample of AGN.

We present an analysis of the properties of the cluster of galaxies RXJ 1821.6+6827, or NEP 5281, at a redshift z=0.816+/-0.001. RXJ 1821.6+6827 was discovered during the optical identification of the X-ray sources in the North Ecliptic Pole (NEP) region of the ROSAT All-Sky Survey and it is the highest redshift cluster of galaxies of the NEP survey. We have measured spectroscopic redshifts for twenty cluster galaxies using the Keck-I and the Canada-France-Hawai'i (CFH) telescopes. The value for the cluster velocity dispersion is sigma_V=775(+182,-113) km s-1. The cluster was also observed by XMM-Newton. Both the optical and X-ray data are presented in this paper. The cluster has an unabsorbed X-ray flux in the 2-10 keV energy band of F(2-10 keV)=1.24(+0.16,-0.23) x 10-13 erg cm2 s-1 and a K-corrected luminosity in the same band of L(2-10 keV)=6.32(+76,-0.73)x10^44 h_50^-2 erg s-1 (90% confidence level). The cluster X-ray bolometric luminosity is L(BOL,X)=1.35(+0.08,-0.21)x10^45 h_50^-2 erg s-1. The data do not allow fitting both metal abundance and temperature at the same time. The abundance is unconstrained and can vary in the range 0.28-1.42 Z_sun while the best fit X-ray temperature is T=4.7(+1.2,-0.7) keV. This emission weighted X-ray temperature is a little lower, barely within the uncertainties, than the predicted temperature, T=6.34(+0.13,-0.35) keV, from the L_X-T_X relation of local clusters published in the literature. The optically measured velocitydispersion is consistent with the velocity dispersion expected from the sigma_V-T_X relationship. We also examine the point X-ray source RXJ1821.9+6818, or NEP 5330, located to the south east of the cluster which was identified as a QSO at z=1.692+/-0.008 in the ROSAT NEP survey.

We combine the recently published CIZA (clusters in the zone of avoidance) galaxy cluster catalog with the XBAC (X-ray-brightest Abell-type cluster) sample to produce the first all-sky catalog of X-ray clusters, in order to examine the origins of the Local Group's peculiar velocity without the use of reconstruction methods to fill the traditional zone of avoidance. The advantages of this approach are (1) X-ray-emitting clusters tend to trace the deepest potential wells and therefore have the greatest effect on the dynamics of the Local Group, and (2) our all-sky sample provides data for nearly a quarter of the sky that is largely incomplete in optical cluster catalogs. We find that the direction of the Local Group's peculiar velocity is well aligned with the cosmic microwave background (CMB) as early as the Great Attractor region 40 h^-1 Mpc away, but that the amplitude of its dipole motion is largely set between 140 and 160 h^-1 Mpc. Unlike previous studies using galaxy samples, we find that without Virgo included, ~70% of our dipole signal comes from mass concentrations at large distances (>60 h^-1 Mpc) and does not flatten, indicating isotropy in the cluster distribution, until at least 160 h^-1 Mpc. We also present a detailed discussion of our dipole profile, linking observed features to the structures and superclusters that produce them. We find that most of the dipole signal at large distances can be attributed to the Shapley supercluster centered at about 150 h^-1 Mpc and a handful of very massive individual clusters, some of which are newly discovered and lie well inside the zone of avoidance.

We report measurements of the cluster X-ray luminosity function out to z=0.8 based on the final sample of 201 galaxy systems from the 160 Square Degree ROSAT Cluster Survey. There is little evidence for any measurable change in cluster abundance out to z~0.6 at luminosities less than a few times 10^44 ergs/s (0.5-2.0 keV). However, between 0.6 < z < 0.8 and at luminosities above 10^44 ergs/s, the observed volume densities are significantly lower than those of the present-day population. We quantify this cluster deficit using integrated number counts and a maximum-likelihood analysis of the observed luminosity-redshift distribution fit with a model luminosity function. The negative evolution signal is >3 sigma regardless of the adopted local luminosity function or cosmological framework. Our results and those from several other surveys independently confirm the presence of evolution. Whereas the bulk of the cluster population does not evolve, the most luminous and presumably most massive structures evolve appreciably between z=0.8 and the present. Interpreted in the context of hierarchical structure formation, we are probing sufficiently large mass aggregations at sufficiently early times in cosmological history where the Universe has yet to assemble these clusters to present-day volume densities.Comment: 15 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

We combine the recently published CIZA galaxy cluster catalogue with the XBACs cluster sample to produce the first all-sky catalogue of X-ray clusters in order to examine the origins of the Local Group's peculiar velocity without the use of reconstruction methods to fill the traditional Zone of Avoidance. The advantages of this approach are (i) X-ray emitting clusters tend to trace the deepest potential wells and therefore have the greatest effect on the dynamics of the Local Group and (ii) our all-sky sample provides data for nearly a quarter of the sky that is largely incomplete in optical cluster catalogues. We find that the direction of the Local Group's peculiar velocity is well aligned with the CMB as early as the Great Attractor region 40 h^-1 Mpc away, but that the amplitude of its dipole motion is largely set between 140 and 160 h^-1 Mpc. Unlike previous studies using galaxy samples, we find that without Virgo included, roughly ~70% of our dipole signal comes from mass concentrations at large distances (>60 h^-1 Mpc) and does not flatten, indicating isotropy in the cluster distribution, until at least 160 h^-1 Mpc. We also present a detailed discussion of our dipole profile, linking observed features to the structures and superclusters that produce them. We find that most of the dipole signal can be attributed to the Shapley supercluster centered at about 150 h^-1 Mpc and a handful of very massive individual clusters, some of which are newly discovered and lie well in the Zone of Avoidance.

We report measurements of the cluster X-ray luminosity function out to z=0.8 based on the final sample of 201 galaxy systems from the 160 Square Degree ROSAT Cluster Survey. There is little evidence for any measurable change in cluster abundance out to z~0.6 at luminosities less than a few times 10^44 ergs/s (0.5-2.0 keV). However, between 0.6 < z < 0.8 and at luminosities above 10^44 ergs/s, the observed volume densities are significantly lower than those of the present-day population. We quantify this cluster deficit using integrated number counts and a maximum-likelihood analysis of the observed luminosity-redshift distribution fit with a model luminosity function. The negative evolution signal is >3 sigma regardless of the adopted local luminosity function or cosmological framework. Our results and those from several other surveys independently confirm the presence of evolution. Whereas the bulk of the cluster population does not evolve, the most luminous and presumably most massive structures evolve appreciably between z=0.8 and the present. Interpreted in the context of hierarchical structure formation, we are probing sufficiently large mass aggregations at sufficiently early times in cosmological history where the Universe has yet to assemble these clusters to present-day volume densities.

The X-ray data around the North Ecliptic Pole (NEP) of the ROSAT All Sky Survey have been used to construct a contiguous area survey consisting of a sample of 445 individual X-ray sources above a flux of ~2 × 10-14 ergs cm-2 s-1 in the 0.5-2.0 keV energy band. The NEP survey is centered at α2000 = 18h00m, δ2000 = +66°33' and covers a region of 80.7 deg2 at a moderate Galactic latitude of b = 298. Hence, the NEP survey is as deep and covers a comparable solid angle to the ROSAT serendipitous surveys but is also contiguous. We have identified 99.6% of the sources and determined redshifts for the extragalactic objects. In this paper we present the optical identifications of the NEP catalog of X-ray sources including basic X-ray data and properties of the sources. We also describe with some detail the optical identification procedure. The classification of the optical counterparts to the NEP sources is very similar to that of previous surveys, in particular the Einstein Extended Medium Sensitivity Survey (EMSS). The main constituents of the catalog are active galactic nuclei (AGNs) (~49%), either type 1 or type 2 according to the broadness of their permitted emission lines. Stellar counterparts are the second most common identification class (~34%). Clusters and groups of galaxies comprise 14%, and BL Lacertae objects 2%. One non-AGN galaxy and one planetary nebula have also been found. The NEP catalog of X-ray sources is a homogeneous sample of astronomical objects featuring complete optical identification.