Supernova Spectropolarimetry with the VLT

Details Supernova Spectropolarimetry with the VLT Supernova Spectropolarimetry with the VLT

Jan 2012

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2012aas...21924214w&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #219, #242.14

Mathematics

Logic

Scientific paper

Supernova explosions are intrinsically three-dimensional phenomena with significant departures from spherical symmetry. We summarize the evidence derived from spectropolarimetry that has established several key results: Virtually all supernovae are significantly aspherical near maximum light; core-collapse supernovae behave differently than thermonuclear (Type Ia) supernovae; the asphericity of core-collapse supernovae is more pronounced in the inner layers, showing that the explosion process is strongly aspherical; core-collapse supernovae tend to establish a preferred direction of asymmetry; and the asphericity is stronger in the outer layers of thermonuclear supernovae, providing constraints on the burning process. An axially symmetric geometry can explain many basic features of core-collapse supernovae, but significant departures from axial symmetry are needed to explain most events. We introduce a spectropolarimetry type to classify the range of behavior observed in polarized supernovae. Understanding asymmetries in supernovae is important for phenomena as diverse as the origins of gamma-ray bursts and the cosmological applications of Type Ia supernovae in studies of the dynamics of the universe. Spectropolarimetry of core-collapse supernovae suggests segregation of ejected chemical elements and the presence of buried "jets." The combination of spectroscopic and spectropolarimetric indicators suggests a single geometric configuration for normal Type Ia, with some of the diversity of observed properties arising from orientation effects.

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