An off-axis galaxy cluster merger: Abell 0141

We present structural analysis results of Abell 0141 (z = 0.23) based on X-ray data. The X-ray luminosity map demonstrates that Abell 0141 (A0141) is a bimodal galaxy cluster, which is separated on the sky by ∼0.65 Mpc with an elongation along the north-south direction. The optical galaxy density map also demonstrates this bimodality. We estimate sub-cluster ICM temperatures of 5.17^{+0.20}_{-0.19} keV for A0141N and 5.23^{+0.24}_{-0.23} keV for A0141S. We obtain X-ray morphological parameters w = 0.034 ± 0.004, c = 0.113 ± 0.004, and w = 0.039 ± 0.004, c = 0.104 ± 0.005 for A0141N and A0141S, respectively. The resulting X-ray morphological parameters indicate that both sub-clusters are moderately disturbed non-cool core structures. We find a slight brightness jump in the bridge region, and yet, there is still an absence of strong X-ray emitting gas between sub-clusters. We discover a significantly hotspot (∼10 keV) between sub-clusters, and a Mach number M = 1.69^{+0.40}_{-0.37} is obtained by using the temperature jump condition. However, we did not find direct evidence for shock-heating between sub-clusters. We estimate the sub-clusters' central entropies as K₀ > 100 keV cm², which indicates that the sub-clusters are not cool cores. We find some evidence that the system undergoes an off-axis collision; however, the cores of each sub-clusters have not yet been destroyed. Due to the orientation of X-ray tails of sub-clusters, we suggest that the northern sub-cluster moves through the south-west direction, and the southern cluster moves through the north-east direction. In conclusion, we are witnessing an earlier phase of close core passage between sub-clusters.