ROSAT eBCS: 300 X-ray Bright Galaxy Clusters in the Northern Sky

300 galaxy clusters form the Extended Brightest Cluster Sample (eBCS), combining a high-flux sample of 201 clusters and a low-flux extension of 99 clusters. The data was compiled by researchers from the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) and published in papers from 1998 and 2000. This is the largest X-ray-selected cluster sample from the RASS, with clusters located in the northern hemisphere at high Galactic latitudes.

Use Cases

• Statistical studies of cluster properties in the local Universe based on X-ray luminosity and redshift.
• Cosmological analysis using a homogeneously selected, flux-limited sample of galaxy clusters.
• Identifying targets for follow-up observations based on X-ray flux and position.
• Quantifying and correcting for sample incompleteness as a function of X-ray luminosity and redshift.

Strengths

• X-ray fluxes are accurate to better than 15%, with a mean 1-sigma error.
• The high-flux core sample is 90% flux-complete, and the overall incompleteness can be accurately quantified.
• The sample is homogeneously selected from ROSAT All-Sky Survey data with effort to minimize contamination by non-cluster sources.

Limitations

• The combined sample's nominal completeness is relatively low at 75%.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), HEASARC table.

Collection Method

Selected from ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) data using an algorithm tailored for detecting cluster X-ray emission.

Time Range

Data from the ROSAT mission, with sample publications in 1998 and 2000.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 18:44:04.617323; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Northern hemisphere (Declination >=0 degrees) at high Galactic latitudes (|b| >= 20 degrees).