Previous | Session 41 | Next | Author Index | Block Schedule
E. J. Hallman, J. O. Burns (University of Colorado), P. M. Motl (Louisiana State University), M. L. Norman (University of California-San Diego)
We present a new method of calculating the value of the Hubble constant (H0) from X-ray/SZE observations of clusters of galaxies. Values of H0 reported from cluster observations are systematically low compared to other methods. We show using a large sample of numerically simulated clusters placed at a variety of redshifts that the typically used method of calculating H0, which assumes the cluster gas to be isothermal, results in a 20-30% underestimate of the mean value. This new method, which assumes the cluster gas temperature has a radial dependence described by a universal temperature profile (UTP), results in a value much closer to the true value of H0, the mean is a 3-8% overestimate. The new method also has greatly reduced scatter about the mean for all the clusters in the simulated catalog compared to the isothermal method. Our new method requires no additional observational effort compared to the traditional technique. This simple change in the analysis of the cluster data results in values of H0 which are consistent with other observations.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: hallman@casa.colorado.edu
Previous | Session 41 | Next
Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 37 #4
© 2005. The American Astronomical Soceity.