A Narrow Band Chandra X-ray Analysis of SNR 3C 391

We present narrow-band and equivalent width (EW) images of the thermal composite supernova remnant (SNR) 3C 391 in the X-ray emission lines of Mg, Si and S using the Chandra ACIS Observational data. The EW images reveal the spatial distribution of the emission of the metal species Mg, Si and S in the remnant. They have a clumpy structure similar to that seen in the broadband diffuse emission, suggesting that they are largely of interstellar origin. We find an interesting finger-like feature protruding outside the southwestern radio border of the remnant, somewhat similar to the jet-like Si structure found in the famous SNR Cas A. This feature may possibly be the debris of the jet of ejecta from an asymmetrical supernova explosion of a massive progenitor star.     

Numerically investigating the peculiar periphery of a supernova remnant in the medium with a density gradient: the case of RCW 103

The young shell-type supernova remnant RCW 103 has peculiar properties in the X-ray morphology obtained with Chandra.The southeastern shell is brighter in the X-rays,and the curved border of the shell in this region is flatter than the other part.We investigate the formation of the peculiar periphery of the supernova remnant RCW 103 using 3D hydrodynamical simulation.Assuming that the supernova ejecta has been evolved in the medium with a density gradient,the detected shape of the periphery can be generally reproduced.For RCW 103,with the ejecta mass of 3.0 M,the density of the background material of 2.0 cm^-3,and a gradient of 3.3-4.0 cm^-3pc^-1,the X-ray periphery can be generally reproduced.The simulation turned out that the asymmetry of the SNR RCW 103 is mainly due to the inhomogeneous medium with a density gradient.     

The 3D structure of N132D in the LMC: a late-stage young supernova remnant

We have used the Wide Field Spectrograph (WiFeS) on the 2.3 m telescope at Siding Spring Observatory to map the [O III] 5007 Å dynamics of the young oxygen-rich supernova remnant N132D in the Large Magellanic Cloud. From the resultant data cube, we have been able to reconstruct the full 3D structure of the system of [O III] filaments. The majority of the ejecta form a ring of ～12 pc in diameter inclined at an angle of ～25 degrees to the line of sight. We conclude that SNR N132D is approaching the end of the reverse shock phase before entering the fully thermalized Sedov phase of evolution. We speculate that the ring of oxygen-rich material comes from ejecta in the equatorial plane of a bipolar explosion, and that the overall shape of the SNR is strongly influenced by the pre-supernova mass loss from the progenitor star. We find tantalizing evidence of a polar jet associated with a very fast oxygen-rich knot, and clear evidence that the central star has interacted with one or more dense clouds in the surrounding ISM.     

Iron needles in supernova remnants?

It has been suggested by Dwek that iron needles could explain the submillimetre emission from the Cas A supernova remnant (SNR) with only a very small total mass. We investigate whether a similar model holds for the Kepler SNR, and find that its emission could indeed be explained by a dust mass of less than  10⁻² M_⊙  , dependent on the axial ratio l / a of the needles – which we constrain to be less than 700. But the implied needle model for Kepler is inconsistent with that suggested for Cas A since either the needles would have to have a resistivity one or two orders of magnitude greater than those in Cas A or the electron density in Kepler's shocked plasma must be 40 times greater than suggested by X-ray observations. An additional problem with the needle model is that the implied thickness of the needles seems to be implausibly small, if the emission properties are calculated under the usual approximations.     

Acceleration of a Young Supernova Remnant by an Associated Pulsar

We present a numerical model of the action of a pulsar on its associated supernova remnant. The expansion of the blast wave in the progenitor star has first been considered until radiation pressure within the ejected material becomes negligible due to expansion. By assuming that expansion is ballistic and that the ejecta is opaque to the pulsar 's magnetodipole radiation, the model produces a radiation-filled cavity which grows around the pulsar and contributes to power the dynamics of the forming supernova remnant. The interface between the cavity and the ejecta has been modelled as a thin shell which, depending on the initial spin frequency of the pulsar, can sweep through the ejecta and reach the blast wave. Results for the evolution of the shell indicate that it may strike the front most part of the shocked gas some 60 years after the explosion. Such pulsar-supernova remnant interactions are proposed to form the base of a new subclassification of pulsar-filled supernova remnants. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Chandra observations of Tycho’s supernova remnant

We present a newChandra observation of Tycho’s supernova remnant with the Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer. Multicolor Xray imaging reveals new details of the outer shock and ejecta. At energies between 4 and 6 keV, the outline of the outer shock is clearly revealed in X-rays for the first time. The distribution of the emission from lines of Si and Fe are confirmed to have a different morphology from each other, and the Si ejecta are shown to extend to the blast shock at several locations. Characteristic spectra of the outer shock and ejecta are also presented.     

High Spatial Resolution X-Ray Spectroscopy of Cas A with Chandra

We present high spatial resolution X-ray spectroscopy of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A with the Chandra observations. The X-ray emitting region of this remnant was divided into 38 × 34 pixels of 10″× 10″ each. Spectra of 960 pixels were created and fitted with an absorbed two component non-equilibrium ionization model. From the results of the spectral analysis we obtained maps of absorbing column density, temperatures, ionization ages, and the abundances of Ne, Mg, Si, S, Ca and Fe. The Si, S and possibly Ca abundance maps show obvious jet structures, while Fe does not follow the jet but seems to be distributed perpendicular to it. The abundances of Si, S and Ca show tight correlations between one another over a range of about two dex. This suggests that they are ejecta from explosive Oburning and incomplete Si-buming. Meanwhile, the Ne abundance is well correlated with that of Mg, indicating them to be the ashes of explosive C/Ne burning. The Fe abundance is positively correlated with that of Si when the latter is lower than 3 times the solar value, and is negatively correlated when higher. We suggest that such a two phase correlation is due to the different ways in which Fe was synthesized.     

Cassiopeia A: dust factory revealed via submillimetre polarimetry

If Type II supernovae – the evolutionary end points of short-lived, massive stars – produce a significant quantity of dust  (>0.1 M_⊙)  then they can explain the rest-frame far-infrared emission seen in galaxies and quasars in the first Gyr of the Universe. Submillimetre (submm) observations of the Galactic supernova remnant, Cas A, provided the first observational evidence for the formation of significant quantities of dust in Type II supernovae. In this paper, we present new data which show that the submm emission from Cas A is polarized at a level significantly higher than that of its synchrotron emission. The orientation is consistent with that of the magnetic field in Cas A, implying that the polarized submm emission is associated with the remnant. No known mechanism would vary the synchrotron polarization in this way and so we attribute the excess polarized submm flux to cold dust within the remnant, providing fresh evidence that cosmic dust can form rapidly. This is supported by the presence of both polarized and unpolarized dust emission in the north of the remnant where there is no contamination from foreground molecular clouds. The inferred dust polarization fraction is unprecedented  ( f _pol∼ 30 per cent)  which, coupled with the brief time-scale available for grain alignment (<300 yr), suggests that supernova dust differs from that seen in other Galactic sources (where   f _pol= 2−7  per cent) or that a highly efficient grain alignment process must operate in the environment of a supernova remnant.     

Supernova SN2006gy as a first ever Quark Nova?

The most luminous Supernova SN2006gy (more than 100 times brighter than a typical supernova) has been a challenge to explain by standard models. For example, pair-instability supernovae which are luminous enough seem to have too slow a rise, and core-collapse supernovae do not seem to be luminous enough. We present an alternative scenario involving a Quark Nova (an explosive transition of the newly born neutron star to a quark star) in which a second explosion (delayed) occurs inside the ejecta of a normal supernova. The reheated supernova ejecta can radiate at higher levels for longer periods of time primarily due to reduced adiabatic-expansion losses, unlike the standard supernova case. We find an encouraging match between the resulting light curve and that observed in the case of SN2006gy suggesting that we might have at hand the first ever signature of a Quark Nova. Successful application of our model to SN2005gj and SN2005ap is also presented.     

The putative nebula of the Wolf-Rayet WR 60 star: a case of mistaken identity and reclassification as a new supernova remnant G310.5+0.8

We present narrow band AAO/UKST Hα images and medium and low resolution optical spectra of a nebula shell putatively associated with the Wolf-Rayet star WR 60. We also present the first identification of this shell in the radio regime at 843 MHz and at 4850 MHz from the Sydney University Molonglo Sky Survey (SUMSS), and from the Parkes-MIT-NRAO (PMN) survey respectively. This radio emission closely follows the optical emission. The optical spectra from the shell exhibits the typical shock excitation signatures sometimes seen in Wolf-Rayet stellar ejecta but also common to supernova remnants. A key finding however, is that the WR 60 star, is not, in fact, anywhere near the geometrical centre of the putative arcuate nebula ejecta as had been previously stated. This was due to an erroneous positional identification for the star in the literature which we now correct. This new identification calls into serious question any association of the nebula with WR 60 as such nebula are usually quite well centred on the WR stars themselves. We now propose that this fact combined with our new optical spectra, deeper Hα imaging and newly identified radio structures actually imply that the WR 60 nebula should be reclassified as an unassociated new supernova remnant which we designate G310.5+0.8.     

MHD simulations of rayleigh-taylor instability in young supernova remnants

Radio observations shows that young supernova remnants such as Tycho and Cas A generally exhibit a circular clumpy shell. This shell shows a radial magnetic field whose equipartition strength is 2 to 3 orders of magnitude higher than the interstellar field. A simple compression of the ambient field by the shock can explain neither of these observations. We show that the Rayleigh-Taylor instability which occurs at the ejecta/ISM interface can explain these observations. We have done MHD simulations of the instability in the shell of Type-I supernova remnants for the first time by utilizing moving grid technique. Our simulation shows that Rayleigh-Taylor and Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities amplify ambient magnetic fields locally and produce the clumpy radio shell. Strong magnetic field lines draped around the Rayleigh-Taylor fingers produce the radial B-vector polarization, whereas thermal bremsstrahlung from the dense fingers themselves produce the clumpy X-ray emission.     

Hints of a second explosion(a quark nova) in Cassiopeia A supernova

We show that the explosive transition of the neutron star(NS)to a quark star(QS)(a Quark Nova)in Cassiopeia A(Cas A)a few days following the supernova(SN)proper can account for several of the puzzling kinematic and nucleosynthetic features that are observed.The observed decoupling between Fe and44Ti and the lack of Fe emission within44Ti regions is expected in the QN model owing to the spallation of the inner SN ejecta by relativistic QN neutrons.Our model predicts the44Ti to be more prominent to the NW of the central compact object(CCO)than in the SE and little of it along the NE-SW jets,in agreement with Nu Star observations.Other intriguing features of Cas A are addressed,such as the lack of a pulsar wind nebula and the reported few percent drop in the CCO temperature over a period of 10 yr.     

The dynamic evolution of the Kepler supernova remnant

Two supernovae exploding events were observed visually from the same position, the north of Tian-Jiang in Wei-Suei (the north of 42 Ophiuchi), in 1604 and 1664, respectively, and were recorded in the ancient astronomical literatures of China and Korea. However, in recent years only one supernova remnant (SNR) has been identified in this position using advanced optical, radio and X-ray techniques. Some observed information for the Kepler SNR, including its non-spherically symmetric emission property with brighter north but darker south, have been shown. We conjecture that a supernova outburst in 1664 was excited by the 1604 supernova explosion at a distance of about 0.5 parsecs. The present SNR is formed from the summation of these two explosions. The dynamical evolution of the Kepler SNR is studied by means of a time-dependent, hydrodynamic code in the present paper. The density, velocity, temperature, and X-ray emission distribution of the SNR are shown, being the results of dynamic evolution for 380 years following the explosion of the supernova in 1604. Compared with present radio and X-ray observations, these numerical results may reasonably explain the observational features.     

ISO Observations of Freshly Synthesized Supernova Material

ISOCAM observations of Cassiopeia A (Cas A), the youngest supernova remnant known in our galaxy, are discussed. We show how these observations are of interest for the so-called Cas A Neon problem and how these observations have renewed the interest in supernovae as dust factories. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

A possible association of a young pulsar (PSR J0855−4644) with the young Vela supernova remnant RX J0852.0−4622

The recently discovered young supernova remnant (SNR) RX J0852.0−4622 has attracted much interest since its discovery because of the possibility that it may have been generated by the nearest supernova in recent history. We note the presence of two Parkes Multibeam Survey pulsars within the boundary of the remnant. We discuss the properties of the two pulsars and the likelihood of either of them being physically linked to the SNR. We tentatively suggest that, given the current uncertainties in the distance to RX J0852.0−4622, one of these pulsars, the 65-ms period PSR J0855−4644 could indeed be the compact remnant of this supernova explosion. If the pulsar birth site is at the geometrical centre of the nebula, then, for the transverse pulsar velocity to be reasonable, the SNR must be nearby (around 250 pc) and no younger than about 3000 yr old.     

Spectral indices of Galactic radio loops between 1420, 820 and 408 MHz

In this paper, the average brightness temperatures and surface brightnesses at 1420, 820 and 408 MHz of the six main Galactic radio-continuum loops are derived, as are their radio spectral indices. The temperatures and surface brightnesses of the radio loops are computed using data taken from radio-continuum surveys at 1420, 820 and 408 MHz. We have demonstrated the reality of Loops V and VI and present diagrams of their spectra for the first time. We derived the radio spectral indices of Galactic radio loops from radio surveys at three frequencies (1420, 820 and 408 MHz) and confirm them to be non-thermal sources. Diameters and distances of Loops I–VI were also calculated. The results obtained are in good agreement with current theories of supernova remnant (SNR) evolution and suggest that radio loops may have a SNR origin.     

Global very long-baseline interferometry observations of compact radio sources in M82

Observations of the starburst galaxy, M82, have been made with a 20-station global very long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) array at λ 18 cm. Maps are presented of the brightest young supernova remnants (SNR) in M82 and the wide-field mapping techniques used in making images over a field of view of ∼1 arcmin with 3-milliarcsecond resolution are discussed. A limit has been placed on the power-law deceleration of the young supernova remnant (SNR) 43.31+592 with an index greater than 0.73±0.11 from observations with the European VLBI Network. Using the global array we have resolved compact knots of radio emission in the source which, with future global observations, will enable better constraints to be placed on the expansion parameters of this SNR.
The latest global observations have also provided high-resolution images of the most compact radio source in M82, 41.95+575. We determine an upper limit to the radial expansion rate along the major axis of 2000 km s⁻¹. However, the new images also show structure resembling that of collimated ejection which brings into question the previous explanation of the source as being a result of the confinement of a supernova by a high-density circumstellar medium.
It is apparent that we are now able to image the brightest supernova remnants in M82 with a linear scale which allows direct comparison with galactic SNR such as Cassiopeia A.     

The Evolution of Radio Flux Density of Supernova Remnant G1.9+0.3

Radio observations of young supernova remnants (SNRs) can shed light on the early evolution of SNRs. We selected G1.9+0.3 which is the youngest SNR in the Milky Way Galaxy for a study. We compiled the radio flux densities currently available and converted them to the same frequency, which leaves us the evolution of the flux density for the past nearly 50 years. We found that the flux density increased before 2008 and decreased afterwards, meaning the flux density reaching the maximum at an age of about 150–155 yr. We attributed the brightening of the SNR to the increase of either magnetic field or the accelerated high energy electrons. Based on the age at which the flux density reached the peak, combined with the previous numerical simulation, we discussed the ejecta mass of the supernova and kinetic energy released by the supernova explosion.     

Large scale studies of the surroundings of GRS 1915+105

We have carried out radio studies of the surroundings of the superluminal microquasar GRS 1915+105. Our main goal was to understand the possible relation of GRS 1915+105 with two infrared/radio sources that appear symmetrically located with respect to GRS 1915+105 and aligned with the position angle of the relativistic ejecta. We have also studied a nearby supernova remnant to test if the event that created the remnant could have been the progenitor of this hard X-ray binary.     

Submillimeter/millimeter observations of the molecular clouds associated with Tycho's supernova remnant

We have carried out CO J = 2-1 and CO J = 3-2 observations toward Tycho's supernova remnant(SNR) using the KOSMA 3m-telescope.From these observations,we identified three molecular clouds(MCs) around the SNR.The small cloud in the southwest was discovered for the first time.In the north and east,two MCs(Cloud A and Cloud B) adjacent in space display a bow-shaped morphology,and have broad emission lines,which provide some direct evidences of the SNR-MCs interaction.The MCs are revealed at-69--59 km s-1,coinci...