Detection of the extended $\gamma$-ray emission from the new supernova remnant G321.3-3.9 with Fermi-LAT

Abstract

With the 15 yrs of Pass 8 data recorded by the {\em Fermi} Large Area Telescope, we report the detection of an extended gigaelectronvolt emission component with a 68\% containment radius of $0^{\circ}\!.85$, which is spatially associated with the newly identified supernova remnant (SNR) G321.3-3.9. The $\gamma$-ray spectrum is best described by a log-parabola model in the energy range of 100 MeV - 1 TeV, which shows a significant spectral curvature at $\sim$ 1 GeV. Either a leptonic or a hadronic model could explain the multi-wavelength data of G321.3-3.9, while the leptonic model predicts a too low strength of magnetic field. Also considering the flat radio spectrum of G321.3-3.9 and the $\gamma$-ray upper limit in the low energy band, the hadronic model is favored. The spatial coincidence between the $\gamma$-ray morphology and the diffuse thermal X-ray emission of G321.3-3.9 and the curved gigaelectronvolt $\gamma$-ray spectrum of it make G321.3-3.9 to be similar to the typical middle-aged SNRs interacting with molecular clouds. Such characteristics provide another evidence of the potential hadronic origin for its $\gamma$-ray emission. While there is no molecular cloud detected around G321.3-3.9, which challenges the hadronic model.