802 research outputs found
A reddening-free method to estimate the Ni mass of Type Ia supernovae
The increase in the number of Type Ia supernovae (SNe\,Ia) has demonstrated
that the population shows larger diversity than has been assumed in the past.
The reasons (e.g. parent population, explosion mechanism) for this diversity
remain largely unknown. We have investigated a sample of SNe\,Ia near-infrared
light curves and have correlated the phase of the second maximum with the
bolometric peak luminosity. The peak bolometric luminosity is related to the
time of the second maximum (relative to the {\it B} light curve maximum) as
follows : .
Ni masses can be derived from the peak luminosity based on Arnett's
rule, which states that the luminosity at maximum is equal to instantaneous
energy generated by the nickel decay. We check this assumption against recent
radiative-transfer calculations of Chandrasekhar-mass delayed detonation models
and find this assumption is valid to within 10\% in recent radiative-transfer
calculations of Chandrasekhar-mass delayed detonation models.
The vs. relation is applied to a sample of 40 additional
SNe\,Ia with significant reddening ( 0.1 mag) and a reddening-free
bolometric luminosity function of SNe~Ia is established. The method is tested
with the Ni mass measurement from the direct observation of
rays in the heavily absorbed SN 2014J and found to be fully
consistent.
Super-Chandrasekhar-mass explosions, in particular SN\,2007if, do not follow
the relations between peak luminosity and second IR maximum. This may point to
an additional energy source contributing at maximum light.
The luminosity function of SNe\,Ia is constructed and is shown to be
asymmetric with a tail of low-luminosity objects and a rather sharp
high-luminosity cutoff, although it might be influenced by selection effects.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, Accepted to A&
Linear growth of spiral SASI modes in core-collapse supernovae
Two-dimensional axisymmetric simulations have shown that the post-bounce
accretion shock in core collapse supernovae is subject to the Spherical
Accretion Shock Instability, or SASI. Recent three-dimensional simulations have
revealed the existence of a non-axisymmetric mode of the SASI as well, where
the postshock flow displays a spiral pattern. Here we investigate the growth of
these spiral modes using two-dimensional simulations of the post-bounce
accretion flow in the equatorial plane of a core-collapse supernova. By
perturbing a steady-state model we are able to excite both one, two and
three-armed spiral modes that grow exponentially with time, demonstrating that
these are linearly unstable modes closely related to the original axisymmetric
sloshing modes. By tracking the distribution of angular momentum, we show that
these modes are able to efficiently separate the angular momentum of the
accretion flow (which maintains a net angular momentum of zero), leading to a
significant spin-up of the underlying accreting proto-neutron star.Comment: To be published in The Astrophysical Journa
Ascertaining the Core Collapse Supernova Mechanism: An Emerging Picture?
Here we present the results from two sets of simulations, in two and three
spatial dimensions. In two dimensions, the simulations include multifrequency
flux-limited diffusion neutrino transport in the "ray-by-ray-plus"
approximation, two-dimensional self gravity in the Newtonian limit, and nuclear
burning through a 14-isotope alpha network. The three-dimensional simulations
are model simulations constructed to reflect the post stellar core bounce
conditions during neutrino shock reheating at the onset of explosion. They are
hydrodynamics-only models that focus on critical aspects of the shock stability
and dynamics and their impact on the supernova mechanism and explosion. In two
dimensions, we obtain explosions (although in one case weak) for two
progenitors (11 and 15 Solar mass models). Moreover, in both cases the
explosion is initiated when the inner edge of the oxygen layer accretes through
the shock. Thus, the shock is not revived while in the iron core, as previously
discussed in the literature. The three-dimensional studies of the development
of the stationary accretion shock instability (SASI) demonstrate the
fundamentally new dynamics allowed when simulations are performed in three
spatial dimensions. The predominant l=1 SASI mode gives way to a stable m=1
mode, which in turn has significant ramifications for the distribution of
angular momentum in the region between the shock and proto-neutron star and,
ultimately, for the spin of the remnant neutron star. Moreover, the
three-dimensional simulations make clear, given the increased number of degrees
of freedom, that two-dimensional models are severely limited by artificially
imposed symmetries.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure
Supernova cosmology: legacy and future
The discovery of dark energy by the first generation of high-redshift
supernova surveys has generated enormous interest beyond cosmology and has
dramatic implications for fundamental physics. Distance measurements using
supernova explosions are the most direct probes of the expansion history of the
Universe, making them extremely useful tools to study the cosmic fabric and the
properties of gravity at the largest scales. The past decade has seen the
confirmation of the original results. Type Ia supernovae are among the leading
techniques to obtain high-precision measurements of the dark energy equation of
state parameter, and in the near future, its time dependence. The success of
these efforts depends on our ability to understand a large number of effects,
mostly of astrophysical nature, influencing the observed flux at Earth. The
frontier now lies in understanding if the observed phenomenon is due to vacuum
energy, albeit its unnatural density, or some exotic new physics. Future
surveys will address the systematic effects with improved calibration
procedures and provide thousands of supernovae for detailed studies.Comment: Invited review, Annual Review of Nuclear and Particle Science
(submitted version
On the Interpretation of Supernova Light Echo Profiles and Spectra
The light echo systems of historical supernovae in the Milky Way and local
group galaxies provide an unprecedented opportunity to reveal the effects of
asymmetry on observables, particularly optical spectra. Scattering dust at
different locations on the light echo ellipsoid witnesses the supernova from
different perspectives and the light consequently scattered towards Earth
preserves the shape of line profile variations introduced by asymmetries in the
supernova photosphere. However, the interpretation of supernova light echo
spectra to date has not involved a detailed consideration of the effects of
outburst duration and geometrical scattering modifications due to finite
scattering dust filament dimension, inclination, and image point-spread
function and spectrograph slit width. In this paper, we explore the
implications of these factors and present a framework for future resolved
supernova light echo spectra interpretation, and test it against Cas A and SN
1987A light echo spectra. We conclude that the full modeling of the dimensions
and orientation of the scattering dust using the observed light echoes at two
or more epochs is critical for the correct interpretation of light echo
spectra. Indeed, without doing so one might falsely conclude that differences
exist when none are actually present.Comment: 18 pages, 22 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Viscous timescale in high mass X-ray binaries
Context: Low mass X-ray binaries were found to have very low frequency breaks
in their power density spectra below which the power density spectra are nearly
in white noise structure and at higher frequencies they approximately follow
the law.
Aims: In 2005, Gilfanov and Arefiev studied X-ray variability of persistent
LMXBs in the Hz frequency range and
To determine whether high mass X-ray binary power density spectra have
similar properties and the findings for low mass X-ray binaries are also valid
for high mass binaries, we analyzed the time series of high mass X-ray binary
sources produced by All Sky Monitor of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer.
Method: We obtained the power density spectra of the high mass X-ray binaries
using the cosine transform of autocorrelation function.
Results: We identified break frequencies for seven sources, namely OAO
1657-415, SS 433, Vela X-1, SMC X-1, 4U 1700-377, GX 301-2, and LMC X-1. The
normalized break frequencies with respect to the orbital frequency
() for sources OAO 1657-415, SS 433, SMC X-1 and LMC X-1
are consistent with those of Roche lobe overflow systems. The other high mass
X-ray binary systems, Vela X-1, GX 301-2, and 4U 1700-377, however, have larger
break frequency ratios, , which are indicative of short
viscous times. These are all wind-accreting sources and the stellar winds in
the systems allow the formation of only short radius discs.
Consequently, we qualitatively distinguished the Roche lobe overflow binaries
from the wind accreting system by comparing their normalized break frequencies.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted by A&
Spectroscopy of High-Redshift Supernovae from the ESSENCE Project: The First Four Years
We present the results of spectroscopic observations from the ESSENCE
high-redshift supernova (SN) survey during its first four years of operation.
This sample includes spectra of all SNe Ia whose light curves were presented by
Miknaitis et al. (2007) and used in the cosmological analyses of Davis et al.
(2007) and Wood-Vasey et al. (2007). The sample represents 273 hours of
spectroscopic observations with 6.5 - 10-m-class telescopes of objects detected
and selected for spectroscopy by the ESSENCE team. We present 174 spectra of
156 objects. Combining this sample with that of Matheson et al. (2005), we have
a total sample of 329 spectra of 274 objects. From this, we are able to
spectroscopically classify 118 Type Ia SNe. As the survey has matured, the
efficiency of classifying SNe Ia has remained constant while we have observed
both higher-redshift SNe Ia and SNe Ia farther from maximum brightness.
Examining the subsample of SNe Ia with host-galaxy redshifts shows that
redshifts derived from only the SN Ia spectra are consistent with redshifts
found from host-galaxy spectra. Moreover, the phases derived from only the SN
Ia spectra are consistent with those derived from light-curve fits. By
comparing our spectra to local templates, we find that the rate of objects
similar to the overluminous SN 1991T and the underluminous SN 1991bg in our
sample are consistent with that of the local sample. We do note, however, that
we detect no object spectroscopically or photometrically similar to SN 1991bg.
Although systematic effects could reduce the high-redshift rate we expect based
on the low-redshift surveys, it is possible that SN 1991bg-like SNe Ia are less
prevalent at high redshift.Comment: 21 pages, 17 figures, accepted to A
2D and 3D Core-Collapse Supernovae Simulation Results Obtained with the CHIMERA Code
Much progress in realistic modeling of core-collapse supernovae has occurred
recently through the availability of multi-teraflop machines and the increasing
sophistication of supernova codes. These improvements are enabling simulations
with enough realism that the explosion mechanism, long a mystery, may soon be
delineated. We briefly describe the CHIMERA code, a supernova code we have
developed to simulate core-collapse supernovae in 1, 2, and 3 spatial
dimensions. We then describe the results of an ongoing suite of 2D simulations
initiated from a 12, 15, 20, and 25 solar mass progenitor. These have all
exhibited explosions and are currently in the expanding phase with the shock at
between 5,000 and 20,000 km. We also briefly describe an ongoing simulation in
3 spatial dimensions initiated from the 15 solar mass progenitor.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Ecological assessment of groundwater ecosystems disturbed by recharge systems using organic matter quality, biofilm characteristics and bacterial diversity
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