Supernova Remnants and Plerions in the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory Era

Abstract

Due to observations made by the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory over the last six years, it appears that a number of galactic supernova remnants may be candidates for sources of cosmic gamma-rays. These include shell-type remnants such as IC443 and $γ$ Cygni, which have no known parent pulsars, but have significant associations with unidentified EGRET sources, and others that appear to be composite, where a pulsar is embedded in a shell (e.g. W44 and Vela), or are purely pulsar-driven, such as the Crab Nebula. This review discusses our present understanding of gamma-ray production in plerionic and non-plerionic supernova remnants, and explores the relationship between such emission and that in other wavebands. Focuses include models of the Crab and Vela nebulae, the composite nature of W44, the relationship of shell-type remnants to cosmic ray production, the relative importance of shock-accelerated protons and electrons, constraints on models placed by TeV, X-ray and radio observations, and the role of electrons injected directly into the remnants by parent pulsars.