LOFAR Low-Frequency Observations Reveal Spectral Properties of Radio Halos and Aged Plasma in Perseus Galaxy Cluster
Preprint using LOFAR LBA (30–57.7 MHz) on one galaxy cluster reports spectral indices for mini-halo, giant halo and ghost cavities, supporting aged plasma in cavities while noting ionospheric limitations.
A new preprint (not yet peer-reviewed) posted to arXiv (https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.23587) presents Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) Low Band Antenna observations of the Perseus galaxy cluster at 30.0–57.7 MHz. Using an observational methodology of direct radio imaging with a resolution of 19.2 × 15.0 arcseconds and an rms noise of 3.7 mJy/beam, the team detected both the central mini-halo and the surrounding 1.1 Mpc giant radio halo previously identified at higher frequencies. This study examines a single galaxy cluster, so its findings are not drawn from a large sample. Spectral indices measured between 44 and 144 MHz are −1.34 ± 0.10 for the mini-halo and −1.01 ± 0.11 for the giant halo; an alternative direct measurement for the giant halo gave −1.28 ± 0.15. The authors note that the discrepancy arises from poor ionospheric conditions, a clear limitation of the current dataset. Two X-ray ghost cavities, interpreted as remnants of an older outburst from the central AGN 3C 84, show steeper spectral indices of −1.86 ± 0.12 and −1.90 ± 0.12. When combined with VLA data at 352 MHz, the spectra steepen at higher frequencies, consistent with these cavities containing old, aged radio plasma. The tailed radio galaxies NGC 1265 and IC 310 also display spectral steepening along their tails. These results provide clearer low-frequency constraints on the cluster’s non-thermal emission but are subject to ionospheric calibration challenges and the inherent limits of single-object studies.
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Sources (1)
- [1]Investigating the radio emission in the Perseus cluster with LOFAR sub-80 MHz LBA(https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.23587)