Coma-type radio halos and cluster X-ray morphology

Abstract

It is pointed out that there seems to be a characteristic X-ray morphology for clusters with Coma-type radio halos. This correlation may be the first evidence that the conditions conducive to formation of a radio halo influence or are influenced by the thermal gas distribution. It is suggested that heating of the intracluster gas by the cosmic rays that power the radio halo may be the source of the correlation. The anomalous gas temperature of Coma may be the result of this process. Future observations of cluster temperatures and velocity dispersions should provide a test of the cosmic-ray heating hypothesis