THE MASSIVE PROGENITOR OF THE TYPE II-LINEAR SUPERNOVA 2009kr
- Spitzer Science Center, California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
- Department of Astronomy, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3411 (United States)
- Division of Physics, Math, and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
- Department of Optics and Quantum Electronics, University of Szeged, Dom ter 9, Szeged H-6720 (Hungary)
- Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Corporation, 65-1238 Mamalahoa Hwy, Kamuela, HI 96743 (United States)
We present early-time photometric and spectroscopic observations of supernova (SN) 2009kr in NGC 1832. We find that its properties to date support its classification as Type II-linear (SN II-L), a relatively rare subclass of core-collapse supernovae (SNe). We have also identified a candidate for the SN progenitor star through comparison of pre-explosion, archival images taken with WFPC2 on board the Hubble Space Telescope with SN images obtained using adaptive optics plus NIRC2 on the 10 m Keck-II telescope. Although the host galaxy's substantial distance ({approx}26 Mpc) results in large uncertainties in the relative astrometry, we find that if this candidate is indeed the progenitor, it is a highly luminous (M {sup 0} {sub V} = -7.8 mag) yellow supergiant with initial mass {approx}18-24 M {sub sun}. This would be the first time that an SN II-L progenitor has been directly identified. Its mass may be a bridge between the upper initial mass limit for the more common Type II-plateau SNe and the inferred initial mass estimate for one Type II-narrow SN.
- OSTI ID:
- 21448840
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal Letters, Vol. 714, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1088/2041-8205/714/2/L254; ISSN 2041-8205
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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