Type II supernovae (SNe) stem from the core collapse of massive (>8 M ) stars. Due to their short lifespan, we expect a very low rate of such events in elliptical hosts, where the star formation rate ...is low, and which are mostly comprised of an old stellar population. SN 2016hil (iPTF16hil) is an SN II located in the extreme outskirts of an elliptical galaxy at z = 0.0608 (projected distance 27.2 kpc). It was detected near peak (Mr ∼ −17 mag) 9 days after the last non-detection. The event has some potentially peculiar properties: it presented an apparently double-peaked light curve, and its spectra suggest low metallicity content (Z < 0.4 Z ). We place a tentative upper limit on the mass of a potential faint host at using deep optical imaging from Keck/LRIS. In light of this, we discuss the possibility of the progenitor forming locally and other more exotic formation scenarios such as a merger or common-envelope evolution causing a time-delayed explosion. Further observations of the explosion site in the UV are needed in order to distinguish between the cases. Regardless of the origin of the transient, observing a population of such seemingly hostless SNe II could have many uses, including an estimate the amount of faint galaxies in a given volume, and tests of the prediction of a time-delayed population of core-collapse SNe in locations otherwise unfavorable for the detection of such events.
Stars with zero-age main sequence masses between 140 and 260 M ⊙ are thought to explode as pair-instability supernovae (PISNe). During their thermonuclear runaway, PISNe can produce up to several ...tens of solar masses of radioactive nickel, resulting in luminous transients similar to some superluminous supernovae (SLSNe). Yet, no unambiguous PISN has been discovered so far. SN 2018ibb is a hydrogen-poor SLSN at z = 0.166 that evolves extremely slowly compared to the hundreds of known SLSNe. Between mid 2018 and early 2022, we monitored its photometric and spectroscopic evolution from the UV to the near-infrared (NIR) with 2–10 m class telescopes. SN 2018ibb radiated > 3 × 10 51 erg during its evolution, and its bolometric light curve reached > 2 × 10 44 erg s −1 at its peak. The long-lasting rise of > 93 rest-frame days implies a long diffusion time, which requires a very high total ejected mass. The PISN mechanism naturally provides both the energy source ( 56 Ni) and the long diffusion time. Theoretical models of PISNe make clear predictions as to their photometric and spectroscopic properties. SN 2018ibb complies with most tests on the light curves, nebular spectra and host galaxy, and potentially all tests with the interpretation we propose. Both the light curve and the spectra require 25–44 M ⊙ of freshly nucleosynthesised 56 Ni, pointing to the explosion of a metal-poor star with a helium core mass of 120–130 M ⊙ at the time of death. This interpretation is also supported by the tentative detection of Co II λ 1.025 μm, which has never been observed in any other PISN candidate or SLSN before. We observe a significant excess in the blue part of the optical spectrum during the nebular phase, which is in tension with predictions of existing PISN models. However, we have compelling observational evidence for an eruptive mass-loss episode of the progenitor of SN 2018ibb shortly before the explosion, and our dataset reveals that the interaction of the SN ejecta with this oxygen-rich circumstellar material contributed to the observed emission. That may explain this specific discrepancy with PISN models. Powering by a central engine, such as a magnetar or a black hole, can be excluded with high confidence. This makes SN 2018ibb by far the best candidate for being a PISN, to date.
We present a public catalog of transients from the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) Bright Transient Survey, a magnitude-limited (m < 19 mag in either the g or r filter) survey for extragalactic ...transients in the ZTF public stream. We introduce cuts on survey coverage, sky visibility around peak light, and other properties unconnected to the nature of the transient, and show that the resulting statistical sample is spectroscopically 97% complete at <18 mag, 93% complete at <18.5 mag, and 75% complete at <19 mag. We summarize the fundamental properties of this population, identifying distinct duration-luminosity correlations in a variety of supernova (SN) classes and associating the majority of fast optical transients with well-established spectroscopic SN types (primarily SN Ibn and II/IIb). We measure the Type Ia SN and core-collapse (CC) SN rates and luminosity functions, which show good consistency with recent work. About 7% of CC SNe explode in very low-luminosity galaxies (Mi > −16 mag), 10% in red-sequence galaxies, and 1% in massive ellipticals. We find no significant difference in the luminosity or color distributions between the host galaxies of SNe Type II and SNe Type Ib/c, suggesting that line-driven wind stripping does not play a major role in the loss of the hydrogen envelope from their progenitors. Future large-scale classification efforts with ZTF and other wide-area surveys will provide high-quality measurements of the rates, properties, and environments of all known types of optical transients and limits on the existence of theoretically predicted but as yet unobserved explosions.
Light emission in the first hours and days following core-collapse supernovae (SNe) is dominated by the escape of photons from the expanding shock heated envelope. In a preceding paper, Paper I, we ...provided a simple analytic description of the time dependent luminosity, \(L\), and color temperature, \(T_{\rm col}\), valid up to H recombination (\(T\approx0.7\) eV), for explosions of red supergiants with convective polytropic envelopes without significant circum-stellar medium (CSM). The analytic description was calibrated against "gray" (frequency-independent) photon diffusion numeric calculations. Here we present the results of a large set of 1D multi-group (frequency-dependent) calculations, for a wide range of progenitor parameters (mass, radius, core/envelope mass ratios, metalicity) and explosion energies, using opacity tables that we constructed (and made publicly available), including the contributions of bound-bound and bound-free transitions. We provide an analytic description of the small, \(\simeq10\%\) deviations of the spectrum from blackbody at low frequencies, \(h\nu< 3T_{\rm col}\), and an improved (over Paper I) description of `line dampening' for \(h\nu> 3T_{\rm col}\). We show that the effects of deviations from initial polytropic density distribution are small, and so are the effects of `expansion opacity' and deviations from LTE ionization and excitation (within our model assumptions). A recent study of a large set of type II SN observations finds that our model accounts well for the early multi-band data of more than 50\% of observed SNe (the others are likely affected by thick CSM), enabling the inference of progenitor properties, explosion velocity, and relative extinction.
We identify the progenitor star of SN 2023ixf in the nearby galaxy Messier 101 using Keck/NIRC2 adaptive optics imaging and pre-explosion HST/ACS images. The supernova position, localized with ...diffraction-spike pattern and high precision relative astrometry, unambiguously coincides with a single progenitor candidate of m_F814W=24.96(-0.04)(+0.05). Forced photometry further recovers 2-sigma detections in the F673N and F675W bands and imposes robust flux limits on the bluer bands. Given the reported infrared excess and semi-regular variability of the progenitor, we fit a time-dependent spectral energy distribution (SED) model of a dusty red supergiant (RSG) to a combined dataset of HST photometry, as well as ground-based near-infrared and Spitzer/IRAC 3.6, 4.5 photometry from the literature. The progenitor closely resembles a RSG of T_eff=3343+/-27 K and logL=5.10+/-0.02, with a 0.11+/-0.01 dex (25.2+/-1.7 per cent) variation over the mean luminosity at a period of P=1128.3+/-6.5 days, heavily obscured by a dust envelope with an optical depth of tau=2.83+/-0.03 at 1 micron (or A_V=10.28+/-0.11 mag). Such observed signatures match a post-main sequence star of 18.1(-1.2)(+0.7) Msun, close to the most massive SN II progenitor, with a pulsation-enhanced mass-loss rate of M_dot=(3.58+/-0.15) x 10^(-4) Msun/yr. The dense and confined circumstellar material is likely ejected during the last episode of radial pulsation before the explosion. Notably, we find strong evidence for periodic variation of tau (or both T_eff and tau) along with luminosity, a necessary assumption to reproduce the wavelength dependence of the variability, which implies dust sublimation and condensation during radial pulsations. Given the observed SED, partial dust obscuration remains a possible scenario, but any unobstructed binary companion over 7.1 Msun can be ruled out.
Neutron stars and stellar-mass black holes are the remnants of massive star explosions. Most massive stars reside in close binary systems, and the interplay between the companion star and the newly ...formed compact object has been theoretically explored, but signatures for binarity or evidence for the formation of a compact object during a supernova explosion are still lacking. Here we report a stripped-envelope supernova, SN 2022jli, which shows 12.4-day periodic undulations during the declining light curve. Narrow H\(\alpha\) emission is detected in late-time spectra with concordant periodic velocity shifts, likely arising from hydrogen gas stripped from a companion and accreted onto the compact remnant. A new Fermi/LAT \(\gamma\)-ray source is temporally and positionally consistent with SN 2022jli. The observed properties of SN 2022jli, including periodic undulations in the optical light curve, coherent H\(\alpha\) emission shifting, and evidence for association with a \(\gamma\)-ray source, point to the explosion of a massive star in a binary system leaving behind a bound compact remnant. Mass accretion from the companion star onto the compact object powers the light curve of the supernova and generates the \(\gamma\)-ray emission.
Abridged - Stars with ZAMS masses between 140 and \(260 M_\odot\) are thought to explode as pair-instability supernovae (PISNe). During their thermonuclear runaway, PISNe can produce up to several ...tens of solar masses of radioactive nickel, resulting in luminous transients similar to some superluminous supernovae (SLSNe). Yet, no unambiguous PISN has been discovered so far. SN2018ibb is a H-poor SLSN at \(z=0.166\) that evolves extremely slowly compared to the hundreds of known SLSNe. Between mid 2018 and early 2022, we monitored its photometric and spectroscopic evolution from the UV to the NIR with 2-10m class telescopes. SN2018ibb radiated \(>3\times10^{51} \rm erg\) during its evolution, and its bolometric light curve reached \(>2\times10^{44} \rm erg\,s^{-1}\) at peak. The long-lasting rise of \(>93\) rest-frame days implies a long diffusion time, which requires a very high total ejected mass. The PISN mechanism naturally provides both the energy source (\(^{56}\)Ni) and the long diffusion time. Theoretical models of PISNe make clear predictions for their photometric and spectroscopic properties. SN2018ibb complies with most tests on the light curves, nebular spectra and host galaxy, potentially all tests with the interpretation we propose. Both the light curve and the spectra require 25-44 \(M_\odot\) of freshly nucleosynthesised \(^{56}\)Ni, pointing to the explosion of a metal-poor star with a He-core mass of 120-130 \(M_\odot\) at the time of death. This interpretation is also supported by the tentative detection of Co II\(\lambda\)1.025\(\mu\)m, which has never been observed in any other PISN candidate or SLSN before. Powering by a central engine, such as a magnetar or a black hole, can be excluded with high confidence. This makes SN2018ibb by far the best candidate for being a PISN, to date.
Among the supernovae (SNe) that show strong interaction with the circumstellar medium, there is a rare subclass of Type Ia supernovae, SNe Ia-CSM, that show strong narrow hydrogen emission lines much ...like SNe IIn but on top of a diluted over-luminous Type Ia spectrum. In the only previous systematic study of this class (Silverman et al. 2013), 16 objects were identified, 8 historic and 8 from the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF). Now using the successor survey to PTF, the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), we have classified 12 additional objects of this type through the systematic Bright Transient Survey (BTS). In this study, we present and analyze the optical and mid-IR light curves, optical spectra, and host galaxy properties of this sample. Consistent with previous studies, we find the objects to have slowly evolving light curves compared to normal SNe Ia with peak absolute magnitudes between -19.1 and -21, spectra having weak H\(\beta\), large Balmer decrements of ~7 and strong Ca NIR emission. Out of 10 SNe from our sample observed by NEOWISE, 9 have \(3\sigma\) detections, along with some showing a clear reduction in red-wing of H\(\alpha\), indicative of newly formed dust. We do not find our SN Ia-CSM sample to have a significantly different distribution of equivalent width of He I \(\lambda5876\) than SNe IIn as observed in Silverman et al. 2013. The hosts tend to be late-type galaxies with recent star formation. We also derive a rate estimate of 29\(^{+27}_{-21}\) Gpc\(^{-3}\) yr\(^{-1}\) for SNe Ia-CSM which is ~0.02--0.2 % of the SN Ia rate. This work nearly doubles the sample of well-studied Ia-CSM objects in Silverman et al. 2013, increasing the total number to 28.
Narrow transient emission lines (flash-ionization features) in early supernova (SN) spectra trace the presence of circumstellar material (CSM) around the massive progenitor stars of core-collapse ...SNe. The lines disappear within days after the SN explosion, suggesting that this material is spatially confined, and originates from enhanced mass loss shortly (months to a few years) prior to explosion. We performed a systematic survey of H-rich (Type II) SNe discovered within less than two days from explosion during the first phase of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) survey (2018-2020), finding thirty events for which a first spectrum was obtained within \(< 2\) days from explosion. The measured fraction of events showing flash ionisation features (\(>36\%\) at \(95\%\) confidence level) confirms that elevated mass loss in massive stars prior to SN explosion is common. We find that SNe II showing flash ionisation features are not significantly brighter, nor bluer, nor more slowly rising than those without. This implies that CSM interaction does not contribute significantly to their early continuum emission, and that the CSM is likely optically thin. We measured the persistence duration of flash ionisation emission and find that most SNe show flash features for \(\approx 5 \) days. Rarer events, with persistence timescales \(>10\) days, are brighter and rise longer, suggesting these may be intermediate between regular SNe II and strongly-interacting SNe IIn.
We present observations of SN 2021csp, the second example of a newly-identified type of supernova (Type Icn) hallmarked by strong, narrow, P Cygni carbon features at early times. The SN appears as a ...fast and luminous blue transient at early times, reaching a peak absolute magnitude of -20 within 3 days due to strong interaction between fast SN ejecta (v ~ 30000 km/s) and a massive, dense, fast-moving C/O wind shed by the WC-like progenitor months before explosion. The narrow line features disappear from the spectrum 10-20 days after explosion and are replaced by a blue continuum dominated by broad Fe features, reminiscent of Type Ibn and IIn supernovae and indicative of weaker interaction with more extended H/He-poor material. The transient then abruptly fades ~60 days post-explosion when interaction ceases. Deep limits at later phases suggest minimal heavy-element nucleosynthesis, a low ejecta mass, or both, and imply an origin distinct from that of classical Type Ic supernovae. We place SN 2021csp in context with other fast-evolving interacting transients, and discuss various progenitor scenarios: an ultrastripped progenitor star, a pulsational pair-instability eruption, or a jet-driven fallback supernova from a Wolf-Rayet star. The fallback scenario would naturally explain the similarity between these events and radio-loud fast transients, and suggests a picture in which most stars massive enough to undergo a WR phase collapse directly to black holes at the end of their lives.
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