The Massive Progenitor of the Possible Type II-Linear Supernova 2009hd in Messier 66

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – Solar and Stellar Astrophysics

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

19 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables, accepted for publication in ApJ

Scientific paper

We present observations of SN2009hd in the nearby galaxy M66. This SN is one of the closest to us in recent years but heavily obscured by dust, rendering it unusually faint in the optical, given its proximity. We find that the observed properties of SN2009hd support its classification as a possible Type II-L SN, a relatively rare subclass of CC-SNe. High-precision relative astrometry has been employed to attempt to identify a SN progenitor candidate, based on a pixel-by-pixel comparison between HST F555W and F814W images of the SN site prior to explosion and at late times. A progenitor candidate is identified in the F814W images only; this object is undetected in F555W. Significant uncertainty exists in the astrometry, such that we cannot definitively identify this object as the SN progenitor. Via insertion of artificial stars into the pre-SN HST images, we are able to constrain the progenitor's properties to those of a possible supergiant, with M(F555W)0>-7.6 mag and (V-I) 0>0.99 mag. The magnitude and color limits are consistent with a luminous RSG; however, they also allow for the possibility that the star could have been more yellow than red. From a comparison with theoretical massive-star evolutionary tracks, which include rotation and pulsationally enhanced mass loss, we can place a conservative upper limit on the initial mass for the progenitor of <20 M_sun. If the actual mass of the progenitor is near the upper range allowed by our derived mass limit, then it would be consistent with that for the identified progenitors of the SNII-L 2009kr and the high-luminosity SNII-P 2008cn. The progenitors of these three SNe may possibly bridge the gap between lower-mass RSG that explode as SNeII-P and LBV, or more extreme RSG, from which the more exotic SNeII-n may arise. Very late-time imaging of the SN2009hd site may provide us with more clues regarding the true nature of its progenitor.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

The Massive Progenitor of the Possible Type II-Linear Supernova 2009hd in Messier 66 does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with The Massive Progenitor of the Possible Type II-Linear Supernova 2009hd in Messier 66, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and The Massive Progenitor of the Possible Type II-Linear Supernova 2009hd in Messier 66 will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-16628

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.