Supernova 2010as: the lowest-velocity member of a family of flat-velocity type IIb supernovae

Journal Article · Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Astrophysical Journal

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/792/1/7· OSTI ID:22365243

Folatelli, Gastón; Bersten, Melina C.; Nomoto, Ken'ichi ^[1]; Kuncarayakti, Hanindyo; Hamuy, Mario ^[2]; Olivares Estay, Felipe; Pignata, Giuliano ^[3]; Anderson, Joseph P. ^[4]; Holmbo, Simon; Stritzinger, Maximilian ^[5]; Maeda, Keiichi ^[6]; Morrell, Nidia; Contreras, Carlos; Phillips, Mark M. ^[7]; Förster, Francisco ^[8]; Prieto, José Luis ^[9]; Valenti, Stefano ^[10]; Afonso, Paulo; Altenmüller, Konrad; Elliott, Jonny ^[11] ; others, and

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1. Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (WPI), The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8583 (Japan)
2. Departamento de Astronomía, Universidad de Chile, Casilla 36-D, Santiago (Chile)
3. Departamento de Ciencias Fisicas, Universidad Andres Bello, Avda. Republica 252, Santiago (Chile)
4. European Southern Observatory, Alonso de Cordova 3107, Vitacura, Santiago (Chile)
5. Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 120, DK-8000 Aarhus C (Denmark)
6. Department of Astronomy, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa-Oiwake-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502 (Japan)
7. Las Campanas Observatory, Carnegie Observatories, Casilla 601, La Serena (Chile)
8. Center for Mathematical Modelling, Universidad de Chile, Avenida Blanco Encalada 2120 Piso 7, Santiago (Chile)
9. Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, 4 Ivy Lane, Peyton Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States)
10. Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network, 6740 Cortona Drive, Suite 102, Goleta, CA 93117 (United States)
11. Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Giessenbachstraße 1, D-85740 Garching (Germany)

We present extensive optical and near-infrared photometric and spectroscopic observations of the stripped-envelope supernova SN 2010as. Spectroscopic peculiarities such as initially weak helium features and low expansion velocities with a nearly flat evolution place this object in the small family of events previously identified as transitional Type Ib/c supernovae (SNe). There is ubiquitous evidence of hydrogen, albeit weak, in this family of SNe, indicating that they are in fact a peculiar kind of Type IIb SNe that we name 'flat-velocity' Type IIb. The flat-velocity evolution—which occurs at different levels between 6000 and 8000 km s{sup –1} for different SNe—suggests the presence of a dense shell in the ejecta. Despite the spectroscopic similarities, these objects show surprisingly diverse luminosities. We discuss the possible physical or geometrical unification picture for such diversity. Using archival Hubble Space Telescope images, we associate SN 2010as with a massive cluster and derive a progenitor age of ≈6 Myr, assuming a single star-formation burst, which is compatible with a Wolf-Rayet progenitor. Our hydrodynamical modeling, on the contrary, indicates that the pre-explosion mass was relatively low, ≈4 M {sub ☉}. The seeming contradiction between a young age and low pre-SN mass may be solved by a massive interacting binary progenitor.

• OSTI ID: 22365243
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 792, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTROPHYSICS
COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
EVOLUTION
EXPANSION
EXPLOSIONS
HELIUM
HYDROGEN
IMAGES
LUMINOSITY
MASS
NEAR INFRARED RADIATION
TELESCOPES
TYPE II SUPERNOVAE
VELOCITY