Hostname: page-component-788cddb947-rnj55 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-10-19T02:36:36.202Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The Extragalactic Relative Distance Scale

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 August 2015

G. O. Abell*
Affiliation:
Dept. of Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.A.

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Arguments are given to support the hypothesis that a characteristic point on a cluster luminosity function, m*, corresponds to the same absolute magnitude in all clusters, and thus is an appropriate standard candle for determination of relative cluster distances. It is shown, however, that if m*is a good standard candle, then the first and tenth brightest cluster galaxies, m(1) and m(10), respectively, are not, for m*m(1) and m*m(10) both differ significantly from cluster to cluster. Moreover, m(1) and especially m(10) depend on cluster richness. Distances derived from them for remote clusters chosen for analysis are thus subject to selection effects that depend on cluster richness and on Bautz-Morgan type. Finally, a procedure suggested by Bautz and Abell is described whereby m* can be estimated from observed properties of distant clusters.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Reidel 1974 

References

Abell, G. O.: 1958, Astrophys. J. Suppl. 3, 211.Google Scholar
Abell, G. O.: 1960, Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific 72, 459.Google Scholar
Abell, G. O.: 1965, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 3, 1.Google Scholar
Bautz, L. P. and Abell, G. O.: 1973, Astrophys. J. 184, 709.Google Scholar
Bautz, L. P. and Morgan, W. W.: 1970, Astrophys. J. Letters 162, L149.Google Scholar
Humason, M. L., Mayall, N. U., and Sandage, A. R.: 1956, Astron. J. 61, 97.Google Scholar
Krupp, E. C.: 1973, , University of California, Los Angeles.Google Scholar
Matthews, T. A., Morgan, W. W., and Schmidt, M.: 1964, Astrophys. J. 140, 35.Google Scholar
Morgan, W. W. and Lesh, J. R.: 1965, Astrophys. J. 142, 1364.Google Scholar
Oemler, A.: 1973, Astrophys. J. 180, 11.Google Scholar
Sandage, A. R.: 1968, Astrophys. J. Letters 152, L149.Google Scholar
Sandage, A. R.: 1972, Astrophys. J. 173, 485.Google Scholar
Sandage, A. R. and Hardy, E.: 1973, Astrophys. J. 183, 743.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scott, E. L.: 1957, Astron. J. 62, 248.Google Scholar
Tinsley, B. M.: 1972, Astrophys. J. Letters 173, L93.Google Scholar