Measurement of the Elemental Abundances in Four Rich Clusters of Galaxies. I. Observations

Abstract

The elemental abundances of O, Ne, Mg, Si, S, Ca, Ar, and Fe for four clusters of galaxies (Abell 496, 1060, 2199, and AWM 7) are determined from X-ray spectra derived from Advanced Satellite for Cosmology and Astrophysics performance verification phase observations. Since the gas in the outer parts of the cluster is optically thin and virtually isothermal, the abundance analysis is very straightforward compared to the analysis of stellar or H II region spectra. We find that the abundance ratios of all four clusters are very similar. The mean abundances of O, Ne, Si, S, and Fe are 0.48, 0.62, 0.65, 0.25, and 0.32, respectively, relative to solar. The abundances of Si, S, and Fe are unaffected by the uncertainties in the atomic physics of the Fe L shell. The abundances of Ne and Mg and to a lesser extent O are affected by the present uncertainties in Fe L physics and are thus somewhat more uncertain. The Fe abundances derived from the Fe L lines agree well with those derived from the Fe K lines for these clusters. The observed ratio of the relative abundance of elements is consistent with an origin of all the metals in Type II supernovae. The presence of large numbers of Type II supernovae during the early stages of evolution of cluster galaxies is a very strong constraint on all models of galaxy and chemical evolution and implies either a very flat initial mass function or bimodal star formation during the period when most of the metals were created.