ULTRAVIOLET IMAGING OBSERVATIONS OF THE CD-GALAXY IN ABELL-1795 - FURTHER EVIDENCE FOR MASSIVE STAR-FORMATION IN A COOLING FLOW

We present images from the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UIT) of the Abell 1795 cluster of galaxies. We compare the cD galaxy morphology an d photometry of these data with those from existing archival and publi shed data. The addition of a far-UV color helps us to construct and te st star formation model scenarios for the sources of UV emission. Mode ls of star formation with rates in the range similar to 5-20 M. yr(-1) indicate that the best-fitting models are those with continuous star formation or a recent (similar to 4 Myr old) burst superimposed on an old population. The presence of dust in the galaxy, dramatically revea led by Hubble Space Telescope images, complicates the interpretation o f UV data. However, we find that the broadband UV/optical colors of th is cD galaxy can be reasonably matched by models using a Galactic form for the extinction law with E(B-V) = 0.14. We also briefly discuss ot her objects in the large UIT field of view.