We present new Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) radio-continuum and
XMM-Newton/Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO) observations of the unusual
supernova remnant HFPK 334 in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). The remnant
follows a shell type morphology in the radio-continuum and has a size of
∼20~pc at the SMC distance. The X-ray morphology is similar, however, we
detect a prominent point source close to the center of the SNR exhibiting a
spectrum with a best fit powerlaw with a photon index of Γ=2.7±0.5. This central point source is most likely a background object and cannot
be directly associated with the remnant. The high temperature, nonequilibrium
conditions in the diffuse region suggest that this gas has been recently
shocked and point toward a younger SNR with an age of ≲1800 years.
With an average radio spectral index of α=−0.59±0.09 we find that an
equipartition magnetic field for the remnant is ∼90~μG, a value
typical of younger SNRs in low-density environments. Also, we report detection
of scattered radio polarisation across the remnant at 20~cm, with a peak
fractional polarisation level of 25±5\%.Comment: 19 pages, 6-figures, submitted to A