670 research outputs found
Search for the companions of Galactic SNe Ia
The central regions of the remnants of Galactic SNe Ia have been examined for
the presence of companion stars of the exploded supernovae. We present the
results of this survey for the historical SN 1572 and SN 1006. The spectra of
the stars are modeled to obtain Teff, log g and the metallicity. Radial
velocities are obtained with an accuracy of 5--10 km s. Implications for
the nature of the companion star in SNeIa follow.Comment: 8 pages, 2 Postscript figures. Appeared in "From Twilight to
Highlight: the Physics of Supernovae", ed. W. Hillebrandt & B. Leibundgut
(Springer), pp. 140-14
A Hydrogen-Poor Superluminous Supernova with Enhanced Iron-Group Absorption: A New Link Between SLSNe and Broad-Lined Type Ic SNe
We present optical observations of the Type I superluminous supernova
(SLSN-I) SN2017dwh at , which reached
mag at peak. Spectra taken a few days after peak show an unusual and strong
absorption line centered near 3200\AA\ that we identify with Co II, suggesting
a high fraction of synthesized Ni in the ejecta. By month
after peak, SN2017dwh became much redder than other SLSNe-I, instead strongly
resembling broad-lined Type Ic supernovae (Ic-BL SNe) with clear suppression of
the flux redward of \AA, providing further evidence for a large
mass of Fe-group elements. Late-time upper limits indicate a Ni mass of
M, leaving open the possibility that SN2017dwh produced
a Ni mass comparable to SN1998bw ( M). Fitting the
light curve with a combined magnetar and Ni model using ,
we find that the light curve can easily accommodate such masses without
affecting the inferred magnetar parameters. We also find that SN2017dwh
occurred in the least-luminous detected host galaxy to date for a SLSN-I, with
mag and an implied metallicity of .
The spectral properties of SN2017dwh provide new evidence linking SLSNe-I with
Type Ic-BL SNe, and in particular the high Fe-group abundance may be due to
enhanced Ni production or mixing due to asphericity. Finally, we find
that SN2017dwh represents the most extreme end of a correlation between
continuum shape and Co II absorption strength in the near-peak spectra of
SLSNe-I, indicating that Fe-group abundance likely accounts for some of the
variation in their spectral shapes.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figures, Submitted to Ap
GRB 021004: A Possible Shell Nebula around a Wolf-Rayet Star Gamma-Ray Burst Progenitor
The rapid localization of GRB 021004 by the HETE-2 satellite allowed nearly
continuous monitoring of its early optical afterglow decay, as well as
high-quality optical spectra that determined a redshift of z=2.328 for its
host, an active starburst galaxy with strong Lyman-alpha emission and several
absorption lines. Spectral observations show multiple absorbers blueshifted by
up to 3,155 km/s relative to the host galaxy Lyman-alpha emission.We argue that
these correspond to a fragmented shell nebula, gradually enriched by a
Wolf-Rayet wind over the lifetime of a massive progenitor bubble. In this
scenario, the absorbers can be explained by circumstellar material that have
been radiatively accelerated by the GRB emission. Dynamical and photoionization
models are used to provide constraints on the radiative acceleration from the
early afterglow.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the 2003 GRB
Conferenc
An ultraviolet excess in the superluminous supernova Gaia16apd reveals a powerful central engine
Since the discovery of superluminous supernovae (SLSNe) in the last decade,
it has been known that these events exhibit bluer spectral energy distributions
than other supernova subtypes, with significant output in the ultraviolet.
However, the event Gaia16apd seems to outshine even the other SLSNe at
rest-frame wavelengths below \AA. Yan et al (2016) have recently
presented HST UV spectra and attributed the UV flux to low metallicity and
hence reduced line blanketing. Here we present UV and optical light curves over
a longer baseline in time, revealing a rapid decline at UV wavelengths despite
a typical optical evolution. Combining the published UV spectra with our own
optical data, we demonstrate that Gaia16apd has a much hotter continuum than
virtually any SLSN at maximum light, but it cools rapidly thereafter and is
indistinguishable from the others by -15 days after peak. Comparing
the equivalent widths of UV absorption lines with those of other events, we
show that the excess UV continuum is a result of a more powerful central power
source, rather than a lack of UV absorption relative to other SLSNe or an
additional component from interaction with the surrounding medium. These
findings strongly support the central-engine hypothesis for hydrogen-poor
SLSNe. An explosion ejecting M, where
is the opacity in cmg, and forming a magnetar with spin
period ms, and G (lower than other SLSNe with
comparable rise-times) can consistently explain the light curve evolution and
high temperature at peak. The host metallicity, Z, is
comparable to other SLSNe.Comment: Updated to match accepted version (ApJL
Probing the nature of the massive black hole binary candidate SDSS J1536+0441
We present an imaging study of the black hole binary candidate SDSS
J1536+0441 (z=0.3893), based on deep, high resolution VzK images collected at
the ESO/VLT. The images clearly show an asymmetric elongation, indicating the
presence of a companion source at ~1" (~5 kpc projected distance) East from the
quasar. The host galaxy of the quasar is marginally resolved. We find that the
companion source is a luminous galaxy, the light profile of which suggests the
presence of an unresolved, faint nucleus (either an obscured AGN or a compact
stellar bulge). The study of the environment around the quasar indicates the
occurrence of a significant over-density of galaxies with a redshift compatible
with z~0.4. This suggests that it resides in a moderately rich cluster of
galaxies.Comment: 4 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
Swift J1112.2-8238: A Candidate Relativistic Tidal Disruption Flare
We present observations of Swift J1112.2-8238, and identify it as a candidate
relativistic tidal disruption flare (rTDF). The outburst was first detected by
Swift/BAT in June 2011 as an unknown, long-lived (order of days) -ray
transient source. We show that its position is consistent with the nucleus of a
faint galaxy for which we establish a likely redshift of based on a
single emission line that we interpret as the blended [OII]
doublet. At this redshift, the peak X/-ray luminosity exceeded
ergs s, while a spatially coincident optical transient source
had (M at ) during early
observations, days after the Swift trigger. These properties place
Swift J1112.2-8238 in a very similar region of parameter space to the two
previously identified members of this class, Swift J1644+57 and Swift
J2058+0516. As with those events the high-energy emission shows evidence for
variability over the first few days, while late time observations, almost 3
years post-outburst, demonstrate that it has now switched off. Swift
J1112.2-8238 brings the total number of such events observed by Swift to three,
interestingly all detected by Swift over a 3 month period ( of its
total lifetime as of March 2015). While this suggests the possibility that
further examples may be uncovered by detailed searches of the BAT archives, the
lack of any prime candidates in the years since 2011 means these events are
undoubtedly rare.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication by MNRA
PS16dtm: A Tidal Disruption Event in a Narrow-line Seyfert 1 Galaxy
[Abridged] We present observations of PS16dtm, a luminous transient that
occurred at the nucleus of a known Narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy hosting a
10 M black hole. The transient was previously claimed to be a Type
IIn SLSN due to its luminosity and hydrogen emission lines. The light curve
shows that PS16dtm brightened by about two magnitudes in ~50 days relative to
the archival host brightness and then exhibited a plateau phase for about 100
days followed by the onset of fading in the UV. During the plateau PS16dtm
showed no color evolution, maintained a blackbody temperature of 1.7 x 10
K, and radiated at approximately of the SMBH. The spectra exhibit
multi-component hydrogen emission lines and strong FeII emission, show little
evolution with time, and closely resemble the spectra of NLS1s while being
distinct from those of Type IIn SNe. Moreover, PS16dtm is undetected in the
X-rays to a limit an order of magnitude below an archival X-ray detection of
its host galaxy. These observations strongly link PS16dtm to activity
associated with the SMBH and are difficult to reconcile with a SN origin or any
known form of AGN variability, and therefore we argue that it is a TDE in which
the accretion of the stellar debris powers the rise in the continuum and
excitation of the pre-existing broad line region, while providing material that
obscures the X-ray emitting region of the pre-existing AGN accretion disk. A
detailed TDE model fit to the light curve indicates that PS16dtm will remain
bright for several years; we further predict that the X-ray emission will
reappear on a similar timescale as the accretion rate declines. Finally, we
place PS16dtm in the context of other TDEs and find that TDEs in AGN galaxies
are an order of magnitude more efficient and reach Eddington luminosities,
likely due to interaction of the stellar debris with the pre-existing accretion
disk.Comment: 19 pages, 17 figures, Submitted to Ap
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