6,508 research outputs found
Supernovae Shedding Light on Gamma-Ray Bursts
We review the observational status of the Supernova (SN)/Gamma-Ray Burst
(GRB) connection. In section 2 we provide a short summary of the observational
properties of core-collapse SNe. In sections 3-6 we review the circumstantial
evidences and the direct observations that support the existence of a deep
connection between the death of massive stars and GRBs. Present data suggest
that SNe associated with GRBs form a heterogeneous class of objects including
both bright and faint Hypernovae and perhaps also `standard' Ib/c events. In
section 7, we provide an empirical estimate of the rate of Hypernovae, for a
``MilkyWay-like'' galaxy, of about yr that may
imply the ratio GRB/Hypernovae to be in the range . In the same
framework we find the ratio GRB/SNe-Ibc to be . In section
8 we discuss the possible existence of a lag between the SN explosion and the
associated gamma-ray event. In the few SN/GRB associations so far discovered
the SN explosions and GRB events appear to go off simultaneously. In section 9
we present the conclusions and highlight the open problems that Swift hopefully
will allow us to solve.Comment: 20 pages, 13 figures, invited review at the 4th Workshop Gamma-Ray
Bursts in the Afterglow Era, Rome,18-22 October 2004. Editors: L. Piro, L.
Amati, S. Covino, and B. Gendre. Il Nuovo Cimento, in pres
Two populations of progenitors for type Ia SNe?
We use recent observations of type Ia Supernova (SN Ia) rates to derive, on
robust empirical grounds, the distribution of the delay time (DTD) between the
formation of the progenitor star and its explosion as a SN. Our analysis finds:
i) delay times as long as 3-4 Gyr, derived from observations of SNe Ia at high
redshift, cannot reproduce the dependence of the SN Ia rate on the colors and
on the radio-luminosity of the parent galaxies, as observed in the local
Universe; ii) the comparison between observed SN rates and a grid of
theoretical "single-population" DTDs shows that only a few of them are possibly
consistent with observations. The most successful models are all predicting a
peak of SN explosions soon after star formation and an extended tail in the
DTD, and can reproduce the data but only at a modest statistical confidence
level; iii) present data are best matched by a bimodal DTD, in which about 50%
of type Ia SNe (dubbed "prompt" SN Ia) explode soon after their stellar birth,
in a time of the order of 10^8 years, while the remaining 50% ("tardy" SN Ia)
have a much wider distribution, well described by an exponential function with
a decay time of about 3 Gyr. This fact, coupled with the well established
bimodal distribution of the decay rate, suggests the existence of two classes
of progenitors. We discuss the cosmological implications of this result and
make simple predictions. [Abridged]Comment: 11 pages, MNRAS, in press, modified after referee's comment
On the Evolution of the Cosmic Supernova Rates
Ongoing searches for supernovae (SNe) at cosmological distances have recently
started to provide a link between SN Ia statistics and galaxy evolution. We use
recent estimates of the global history of star formation to compute the
theoretical Type Ia and Type II SN rates as a function of cosmic time from the
present epoch to high redshifts. We show that accurate measurements of the
frequency of SN events in the range 0<z<1 will be valuable probes of the nature
of Type Ia progenitors and the evolution of the stellar birthrate in the
universe. The Next Generation Space Telescope should detect of order 20 Type II
SNe per 4'x 4' field per year in the interval 1<z<4.Comment: LaTeX, 19 pages, 3 figures, to be published in the MNRA
On Core Collapse Supernovae in Normal and in Seyfert Galaxies
This paper estimates the relative frequency of different types of
core-collapse supernovae, in terms of the ratio f between the number of type
Ib--Ic and of type II supernovae. We estimate f independently for all normal
and Seyfert galaxies whose radial velocity is <=14000 km/s, and which had at
least one supernova event recorded in the Asiago catalogue from January 1986 to
August 2000. We find that the ratio f is approx. 0.23+/-0.05 in normal
galaxies. This value is consistent with constant star formation rate and with a
Salpeter Initial Mass Function and average binary rate approx. 50 %. On the
contrary, Seyfert galaxies exceed the ratio f in normal galaxies by a factor
approx. 4 at a confidence level >= 2 sigma. A caveat is that the numbers for
Seyferts are still small (6 type Ib-Ic and 6 type II supernovae discovered as
yet). Assumed real, this excess of type Ib and Ic with respect to type II
supernovae, may indicate a burst of star formation of young age (<= 20 Myr), a
high incidence of binary systems in the inner regions (r <= 0.4 R25) of Seyfert
galaxies, or a top-loaded mass function.Comment: Accepted for Publication in MNRA
A Radial Velocity Survey for LMC Microlensed Sources
We propose a radial velocity survey with the aim to resolve the current
dispute on the LMC lensing: in the pro-macho hypothesis the lenses are halo
white dwarfs or machos in general; in the pro-star hypothesis both the lenses
and the sources are stars in various observed or hypothesized structures of the
Magellanic Clouds and the Galaxy. Star-star lensing should prefer sources at
the backside or behind the LMC disc because lensing is most efficient if the
source is located a few kpc behind a dense screen of stars, here the thin disc
of the LMC. This signature of self-lensing can be looked for by a radial
velocity survey since kinematics of the stars at the back can be markedly
different from that of the majority of stars in the cold, rapidly rotating disc
of the LMC. Detailed simulations of effect together with optimal strategies of
carrying out the proposed survey are reported here. Assuming that the existing
30 or so alerted stars in the LMC are truely microlensed stars, their
kinematics can test the two lensing scenarios; the confidence level varies with
the still very uncertain structure of the LMC. Spectroscopy of the existing
sample and future events requires about two or three good-seeing nights per
year at a 4m-8m class southern telescope, either during the amplification phase
or long after.Comment: minor changes of text, ApJ accepte
Modelling the nova rate in galaxies
We compute theoretical nova rates as well as type Ia SN rates in galaxies of
different morphological type (Milky Way, ellipticals and irregulars) by means
of detailed chemical evolution models, and compare them with the most recent
observations. The main difference among the different galaxies is the assumed
history of star formation. In particular, we predict that the nova rates in
giant ellipticals such as M87 are 100-300 nova/yr, about a factor of ten larger
than in our Galaxy (25 nova/yr), in agreement with very recent estimates from
HST data. The best agreement with the observed rates is obtained if the
recurrence time of novae in ellipticals is assumed to be longer than in the
Milky Way. This result indicates that the star formation rate in ellipticals,
and in particular in M87, must have been very efficient at early cosmic epochs.
We predict a nova rate for the LMC of 1.7 nova/yr, again in agreement with
observations. We compute also the K- and B-band luminosities for ellipticals of
different luminous mass and conclude that there is not a clear trend for the
luminosity specific nova rate with luminosity among these galaxies. However,
firm conclusions about ellipticals cannot be drawn because of possible
observational biases in observing these objects. The comparison between the
specific nova rates in the Milky Way and the LMC indicates a trend of
increasing nova rate passing from the Galaxy towards late-type spirals and
Magellanic irregulars.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, Astronomy and Astrophysics accepte
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