44 research outputs found
A bias-corrected luminosity function for red supergiant supernova progenitor stars
The apparent tension between the luminosity functions of red supergiant (RSG)
stars and of RSG progenitors of Type II supernovae (SNe) is often referred to
as the RSG problem and it motivated some to suggest that many RSGs end their
life without a SN explosion. However, the luminosity functions of RSG SN
progenitors presented so far were biased to high luminosities, because the
sensitivity of the search was not considered. Here, we use limiting magnitudes
to calculate a bias-corrected RSG progenitor luminosity function. We find that
only of all RSG progenitors are brighter than a bolometric
magnitude of , a significantly smaller fraction than
quoted by Davies & Beasor (2020). The larger uncertainty is due to
the relatively small progenitor sample, while uncertainties on measured
quantities such as magnitudes, bolometric corrections, extinction, or SN
distances, only have a minor impact, as long as they fluctuate randomly for
different objects in the sample. The bias-corrected luminosity functions of RSG
SN progenitors and Type M supergiants in the Large Magellanic cloud are
consistent with each other, as also found by Davies & Beasor (2020) for the
uncorrected luminosity function. The RSG progenitor luminosity function, hence,
does not imply the existence of failed SNe.
The presented statistical method is not limited to progenitor searches, but
applies to any situation in which a measurement is done for a sample of
detected objects, but the probed quantity or property can only be determined
for part of the sample.Comment: Accepted by ApJ Letter
Search for precursor eruptions among Type IIb supernovae
The progenitor stars of several Type IIb supernovae (SNe) show indications
for extended hydrogen envelopes. These envelopes might be the outcome of
luminous energetic pre-explosion events, so-called precursor eruptions. We use
the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF) pre-explosion observations of a sample of
27 nearby Type IIb SNe to look for such precursors during the final years prior
to the SN explosion. No precursors are found when combining the observations in
15-day bins, and we calculate the absolute-magnitude-dependent upper limit on
the precursor rate. At the 90% confidence level, Type IIb SNe have on average
precursors as bright as absolute -band magnitude in the final
3.5 years before the explosion and events over the final year. In
contrast, precursors among SNe IIn have a times higher rate. The
kinetic energy required to unbind a low-mass stellar envelope is comparable to
the radiated energy of a few-weeks-long precursor which would be detectable for
the closest SNe in our sample. Therefore, mass ejections, if they are common in
such SNe, are radiatively inefficient or have durations longer than months.
Indeed, when using 60-day bins a faint precursor candidate is detected prior to
SN 2012cs (% false-alarm probability). We also report the detection of
the progenitor of SN 2011dh which does not show detectable variability over the
final two years before the explosion. The suggested progenitor of SN 2012P is
still present, and hence is likely a compact star cluster, or an unrelated
object.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figure
The Early Ultraviolet Light-Curves of Type II Supernovae and the Radii of Their Progenitor Stars
We present a sample of 34 normal SNe II detected with the Zwicky Transient
Facility, with multi-band UV light-curves starting at days after
explosion, as well as X-ray detections and upper limits. We characterize the
early UV-optical colors and provide prescriptions for empirical host-extinction
corrections. We show that the days UV-optical colors and the blackbody
evolution of the sample are consistent with the predictions of spherical phase
shock-cooling (SC), independently of the presence of `flash ionization"
features. We present a framework for fitting SC models which can reproduce the
parameters of a set of multi-group simulations without a significant bias up to
20% in radius and velocity. Observations of about half of the SNe II in the
sample are well-fit by models with breakout radii cm. The other
half are typically more luminous, with observations from day 1 onward that are
better fit by a model with a large cm breakout radius. However,
these fits predict an early rise during the first day that is too slow. We
suggest these large-breakout events are explosions of stars with an inflated
envelope or a confined CSM with a steep density profile, at which breakout
occurs. Using the X-ray data, we derive constraints on the extended
( cm) CSM density independent of spectral modeling, and find most
SNe II progenitors lose a few years before
explosion. This provides independent evidence the CSM around many SNe II
progenitors is confined. We show that the overall observed breakout radius
distribution is skewed to higher radii due to a luminosity bias. We argue that
the of red supergiants (RSG) explode as SNe II with breakout
radii consistent with the observed distribution of field RSG, with a tail
extending to large radii, likely due to the presence of CSM.Comment: Submitted to ApJ. Comments are welcome at [email protected] or
[email protected]
SN 2020bvc : A Broad-line Type Ic Supernova with a Double-peaked Optical Light Curve and a Luminous X-Ray and Radio Counterpart
We present optical, radio, and X-ray observations of SN 2020bvc (=ASASSN-20bs, ZTF 20aalxlis), a nearby (z = 0.0252; d.=.114Mpc) broad-line (BL) Type Ic supernova (SN) and the first double-peaked Ic-BL discovered without a gamma-ray burst (GRB) trigger. Our observations show that SN 2020bvc shares several properties in common with the Ic-BL SN 2006aj, which was associated with the low-luminosity gamma-ray burst (LLGRB) 060218. First, the 10 GHz radio luminosity (L-radio approximate to 10(37) erg s(-1)) is brighter than ordinary core-collapse SNe but fainter than LLGRB SNe such as SN 1998bw (associated with LLGRB 980425). We model our VLA observations (spanning 13-43 days) as synchrotron emission from a mildly relativistic (v greater than or similar to 0.3c) forward shock. Second, with Swift and Chandra, we detect X-ray emission (L-X approximate to 10(41) erg s(-1)) that is not naturally explained as inverse Compton emission or part of the same synchrotron spectrum as the radio emission. Third, high-cadence (6x night(-1)) data from the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) show a double-peaked optical light curve, the first peak from shock cooling of extended low-mass material (mass M-e 10(12) cm) and the second peak from the radioactive decay of 56Ni. SN 2020bvc is the first double-peaked Ic-BL SN discovered without a GRB trigger, so it is noteworthy that it shows X-ray and radio emission similar to LLGRB SNe. For four of the five other nearby (z less than or similar to 0.05) Ic-BL SNe with ZTF high-cadence data, we rule out a first peak like that seen in SN 2006aj and SN 2020bvc, i.e., that lasts approximate to 1 day.and reaches a peak luminosity M approximate to -18. Follow-up X-ray and radio observations of Ic-BL SNe with well-sampled early optical light curves will establish whether double-peaked optical light curves are indeed predictive of LLGRB-like X-ray and radio emission.Peer reviewe
A Large Fraction of Hydrogen-rich Supernova Progenitors Experience Elevated Mass Loss Shortly Prior to Explosion
Spectroscopic detection of narrow emission lines traces the presence of circumstellar mass distributions around massive stars exploding as core-collapse supernovae. Transient emission lines disappearing shortly after the supernova explosion suggest that the material spatial extent is compact and implies an increased mass loss shortly prior to explosion. Here, we present a systematic survey for such transient emission lines (Flash Spectroscopy) among Type II supernovae detected in the first year of the Zwicky Transient Facility survey. We find that at least six out of ten events for which a spectrum was obtained within two days of the estimated explosion time show evidence for such transient flash lines. Our measured flash event fraction (>30% at 95% confidence level) indicates that elevated mass loss is a common process occurring in massive stars that are about to explode as supernovae
The prevalence and influence of circumstellar material around hydrogen-rich supernova progenitors
Narrow transient emission lines (flash-ionization features) in early
supernova (SN) spectra trace the presence of circumstellar material (CSM)
around the massive progenitor stars of core-collapse SNe. The lines disappear
within days after the SN explosion, suggesting that this material is spatially
confined, and originates from enhanced mass loss shortly (months to a few
years) prior to explosion. We performed a systematic survey of H-rich (Type II)
SNe discovered within less than two days from explosion during the first phase
of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) survey (2018-2020), finding thirty
events for which a first spectrum was obtained within days from
explosion. The measured fraction of events showing flash ionisation features
( at confidence level) confirms that elevated mass loss in
massive stars prior to SN explosion is common. We find that SNe II showing
flash ionisation features are not significantly brighter, nor bluer, nor more
slowly rising than those without. This implies that CSM interaction does not
contribute significantly to their early continuum emission, and that the CSM is
likely optically thin. We measured the persistence duration of flash ionisation
emission and find that most SNe show flash features for days.
Rarer events, with persistence timescales days, are brighter and rise
longer, suggesting these may be intermediate between regular SNe II and
strongly-interacting SNe IIn
Less than 1% of Core-Collapse Supernovae in the local universe occur in elliptical galaxies
We present observations of three Core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) in elliptical hosts, detected by the Zwicky Transient Facility Bright Transient Survey (BTS). SN 2019ape is a SN Ic that exploded in the main body of a typical elliptical galaxy. Its properties are consistent with an explosion of a regular SN Ic progenitor. A secondary g-band light curve peak could indicate interaction of the ejecta with circumstellar material (CSM). An H-emitting source at the explosion site suggests a residual local star formation origin. SN 2018fsh and SN 2020uik are SNe II which exploded in the outskirts of elliptical galaxies. SN 2020uik shows typical spectra for SNe II, while SN 2018fsh shows a boxy nebular H profile, a signature of CSM interaction. We combine these 3 SNe with 7 events from the literature and analyze their hosts as a sample. We present multi-wavelength photometry of the hosts, and compare this to archival photometry of all BTS hosts. Using the spectroscopically complete BTS we conclude that of all CCSNe occur in elliptical galaxies. We derive star-formation rates and stellar masses for the host-galaxies and compare them to the properties of other SN hosts. We show that CCSNe in ellipticals have larger physical separations from their hosts compared to SNe Ia in elliptical galaxies, and discuss implications for star-forming activity in elliptical galaxies.</p
IceCube Search for Neutrinos Coincident with Compact Binary Mergers from LIGO-Virgo's First Gravitational-Wave Transient Catalog
Using the IceCube Neutrino Observatory, we search for high-energy neutrino
emission coincident with compact binary mergers observed by the LIGO and Virgo
gravitational wave (GW) detectors during their first and second observing runs.
We present results from two searches targeting emission coincident with the sky
localization of each gravitational wave event within a 1000 second time window
centered around the reported merger time. One search uses a model-independent
unbinned maximum likelihood analysis, which uses neutrino data from IceCube to
search for point-like neutrino sources consistent with the sky localization of
GW events. The other uses the Low-Latency Algorithm for Multi-messenger
Astrophysics, which incorporates astrophysical priors through a Bayesian
framework and includes LIGO-Virgo detector characteristics to determine the
association between the GW source and the neutrinos. No significant neutrino
coincidence is seen by either search during the first two observing runs of the
LIGO-Virgo detectors. We set upper limits on the time-integrated neutrino
emission within the 1000 second window for each of the 11 GW events. These
limits range from 0.02-0.7 . We also set limits on the
total isotropic equivalent energy, , emitted in high-energy
neutrinos by each GW event. These limits range from 1.7 10 -
1.8 10 erg. We conclude with an outlook for LIGO-Virgo
observing run O3, during which both analyses are running in real time