您选择的条件: Ning-Chen Sun
  • An environmental analysis of the fast transient AT2018cow and implications for its progenitor and late-time brightness

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: The nature of the newly discovered fast blue optical transients (FBOTs) is still puzzling astronomers. In this paper we carry out a comprehensive analysis of the molecular gas, ionized gas and stellar populations in the environment of the nearby FBOT AT2018cow based on ALMA, VLT/MUSE and HST/WFC3 observations. A prominent molecular concentration of 6 ($\pm$ 1) $\times$ 10$^6$ $M_\odot$ is found in the vicinity of AT2018cow, which has given rise to two active star-forming complexes with ages of 4 $\pm$ 1 Myr and $\lesssim$2.5 Myr, respectively. Each star-forming complex has a stellar mass of 3 $\times$ 10$^5$ $M_\odot$ and has photoionized a giant H II region with H$\alpha$ luminosity even comparable to that of the 30 Dor mini-starburst region. AT2018cow is spatially coincident with one of the star-forming complexes; however, it is most likely to reside in its foreground since it has a much smaller extinction than the complex. Its progenitor could have been formed in a different star-forming event, and the non-detection of the associated stellar population constrains the progenitor's age to be $\gtrsim$10 Myr and initial mass to be $\lesssim$ 20 $M_\odot$. We further find the late-time brightness of AT2018cow is unlikely to be a stellar object. Its brightness has slightly declined from 2 yr to 4 yr after explosion and is most likely to originate from AT2018cow itself due to some powering mechanism still working at such late times.

  • A UV census of the environments of stripped-envelope supernovae

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: This paper reports an environmental analysis of 41 uniformly-selected stripped-envelope supernovae (SESNe) based on deep ultraviolet-optical images acquired by the Hubble Space Telescope. Young stellar populations are detected in most SN environments and their ages are derived with a hierarchical Bayesian approach. The age distributions are indistinguishable between Type IIb and Type Ib while that for Type Ic is systematically younger. This suggests that the Type Ic SN progenitors are more massive while the Type IIb and Type Ib SNe have very similar progenitor masses. Our result supports a hybrid envelope-stripping mechanism, in which the hydrogen envelopes of the SESN progenitors are stripped via a mass-insensitive process (e.g. binary interaction) while the helium envelopes are stripped via a mass-sensitive process (e.g. stellar wind of the post-binary interaction progenitor). We also provide progenitor constraints for three Type Ibn SNe and two broad-lined Type Ic SNe. All these results demonstrate the importance of the very diverse mass-loss processes in the origins of SESNe.

  • A UV census of the environments of stripped-envelope supernovae

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: This paper reports an environmental analysis of 41 uniformly-selected stripped-envelope supernovae (SESNe) based on deep ultraviolet-optical images acquired by the Hubble Space Telescope. Young stellar populations are detected in most SN environments and their ages are derived with a hierarchical Bayesian approach. The age distributions are indistinguishable between Type IIb and Type Ib while that for Type Ic is systematically younger. This suggests that the Type Ic SN progenitors are more massive while the Type IIb and Type Ib SNe have very similar progenitor masses. Our result supports a hybrid envelope-stripping mechanism, in which the hydrogen envelopes of the SESN progenitors are stripped via a mass-insensitive process (e.g. binary interaction) while the helium envelopes are stripped via a mass-sensitive process (e.g. stellar wind of the post-binary interaction progenitor). We also provide progenitor constraints for three Type Ibn SNe and two broad-lined Type Ic SNe. All these results demonstrate the importance of the very diverse mass-loss processes in the origins of SESNe.

  • A hot and luminous source at the site of the fast transient AT2018cow at 2-3 years after its explosion

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: We report the discovery of a luminous late-time source at the position of the fast blue optical transient (FBOT) AT2018cow on images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) at 714 d and 1136 d after its explosion. This source is detected at both UV and optical wavelengths and has prominent H$\alpha$ emission. It has a very stable brightness between the two epochs and a very blue spectral energy distribution (SED) consistent with $f_\lambda$ $\propto$ $\lambda^{-4.1 \pm 0.1}$, i.e. the Rayleigh-Jeans tail of a hot blackbody with a very high temperature of log($T$/K) $>$ 4.6 and luminosity of log($L$/$L_\odot$) $>$ 7.0. This late-time source is unlikely to be an unrelated object in chance alignment, or due to a light echo of AT2018cow. Other possible scenarios also have some difficulties in explaining this late-time source, including companion star(s), star cluster, the survived progenitor star, interaction with circumstellar medium (CSM), magnetar, or delayed accretion in a tidal disruption event (TDE). Long-term and multi-wavelength monitoring will help to resolve its nature and finally reveal the origin of the "Cow".

  • Toward a better understanding of supernova environments: a study of SNe 2004dg and 2012P in NGC 5806 with HST and MUSE

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: Core-collapse supernovae (SNe) are the inevitable fate of most massive stars. Since most stars form in groups, SN progenitors can be constrained with information of their environments. It remains challenging to accurately analyse the various components in the environment and to correctly identify their relationships with the SN progenitors. Using a combined dataset of VLT/MUSE spatially-resolved integral-field-unit (IFU) spectroscopy and HST/ACS+WFC3 high-spatial resolution imaging, we present a detailed investigation of the environment of the Type II-P SN 2004dg and Type IIb SN 2012P. The two SNe occurred in a spiral arm of NGC 5806, where a star-forming complex is apparent with a giant H II region. By modelling the ionised gas, a compact star cluster and the resolved stars, we derive the ages and extinctions of stellar populations in the vicinity of the SNe. The various components are consistent with a sequence of triggered star formation as the spiral density wave swept through their positions. For SNe 2004dg and 2012P, we identify their host stellar populations and derive initial masses of $10.0^{+0.3}_{-0.2}~M_\odot$ and $15.2^{+2.0}_{-1.0}~M_\odot$ for their progenitors, respectively. Both results are consistent with those from pre-explosion images or nebular-phase spectroscopy. SN 2012P is spatially coincident but less likely to be coeval with the star-forming complex. As in this case, star formation bursts on small scales may appear correlated if they are controlled by any physical processes on larger scales; this may lead to a high probability of chance alignment between older SN progenitors and younger stellar populations.

  • An environmental analysis of the fast transient AT2018cow and implications for its progenitor and late-time brightness

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: The nature of the newly discovered fast blue optical transients (FBOTs) is still puzzling astronomers. In this paper we carry out a comprehensive analysis of the molecular gas, ionized gas and stellar populations in the environment of the nearby FBOT AT2018cow based on ALMA, VLT/MUSE and HST/WFC3 observations. A prominent molecular concentration of 6 ($\pm$ 1) $\times$ 10$^6$ $M_\odot$ is found in the vicinity of AT2018cow, which has given rise to two active star-forming complexes with ages of 4 $\pm$ 1 Myr and $\lesssim$2.5 Myr, respectively. Each star-forming complex has a stellar mass of 3 $\times$ 10$^5$ $M_\odot$ and has photoionized a giant H II region with H$\alpha$ luminosity even comparable to that of the 30 Dor mini-starburst region. AT2018cow is spatially coincident with one of the star-forming complexes; however, it is most likely to reside in its foreground since it has a much smaller extinction than the complex. Its progenitor could have been formed in a different star-forming event, and the non-detection of the associated stellar population constrains the progenitor's age to be $\gtrsim$10 Myr and initial mass to be $\lesssim$ 20 $M_\odot$. We further find the late-time brightness of AT2018cow is unlikely to be a stellar object. Its brightness has slightly declined from 2 yr to 4 yr after explosion and is most likely to originate from AT2018cow itself due to some powering mechanism still working at such late times.

  • An environmental analysis of the Type Ib SN 2019yvr and the possible presence of an inflated binary companion

    分类: 天文学 >> 天文学 提交时间: 2023-02-19

    摘要: SN 2019yvr is the second Type Ib supernova (SN) with a possible direct detection of its progenitor (system); however, the spectral energy distribution (SED) of the pre-explosion source appears much cooler and overluminous than an expected helium-star progenitor. Using Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images and MUSE integral-field-unit (IFU) spectroscopy, we find the SN environment contains three episodes of star formation; the low ejecta mass suggests the SN progenitor is most likely from the oldest population, corresponding to an initial mass of 10.4$^{+1.5}_{-1.3}$ $M_\odot$. The pre-explosion SED can be reproduced by two components, one for the hot and compact SN progenitor and one for a cool and inflated yellow hypergiant (YHG) companion that dominates the brightness. Thus, SN 2019yvr could possibly be the first Type Ib/c SN for which the progenitor's binary companion is directly detected on pre-explosion images. Both the low progenitor mass and the YHG companion suggest significant binary interaction during their evolution. Similar to SN 2014C, SN 2019yvr exhibits a metamorphosis from Type Ib to Type IIn, showing signatures of interaction with hydrogen-rich circumstellar material (CSM) at >150 days; our result supports enhanced pre-SN mass loss as an important process for hydrogen-poor stars at the low mass end of core-collapse SN progenitors.