arXiv subjects

Bon-Chul Koo

Publications and source records attributed to Bon-Chul Koo.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2011

IRAS 15099-5856: Remarkable Mid-Infrared Source with Prominent Crystalline Silicate Emission Embedded in the Supernova Remnant MSH15-52

We report new mid-infrared observations of the remarkable object IRAS 15099-5856 using the space telescopes AKARI and Spitzer, which demonstrate the presence of prominent crystalline silicate emission in this bright source. IRAS 15099-5856 has a complex morphology with a bright central compact source (IRS1) surrounded by knots, spurs, and several extended (~4') arc-like filaments. The source is seen only at >= 10 um. The Spitzer MIR spectrum of IRS1 shows prominent emission features from Mg-rich crystalline silicates, strong [Ne II] 12.81 um and several other faint ionic lines. We model the MIR spectrum as thermal emission from dust and compare with the Herbig Be star HD 100546 and the luminous blue variable R71, which show very similar MIR spectra. Molecular line observations reveal two molecular clouds around the source, but no associated dense molecular cores. We suggest that IRS1 is heated by UV radiation from the adjacent O star Muzzio 10 and that its crystalline silicates most likely originated in a mass outflow from the progenitor of the supernova remnant (SNR) MSH 15-52. IRS1, which is embedded in the SNR, could have been shielded from the SN blast wave if the progenitor was in a close binary system with Muzzio 10. If MSH15-52 is a remnant of Type Ib/c supernova (SN Ib/c), as has been previously proposed, this would confirm the binary model for SN Ib/c. IRS1 and the associated structures may be the relics of massive star death, as shaped by the supernova explosion, the pulsar wind and the intense ionizing radiation of the embedded O star.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2010

Molecular environment and thermal X-ray spectroscopy of the semicircular young composite supernova remnant 3C 396

We have investigated the molecular environment of the semicircular composite supernova remnant (SNR) 3C396 and performed a Chandra spatially resolved thermal X-ray spectroscopic study of this young SNR. With our CO millimeter observations, we find that the molecular clouds (MCs) at V(LSR)~84km/s can better explain the multiwavelength properties of the remnant than the V(LSR)=67-72km/s MCs that are suggested by Lee et al. (2009). At around 84km/s, the western boundary of the SNR is perfectly confined by the western molecular wall. The CO emission fades out from west to east, indicating that the eastern region is of low gas density. In particular, an intruding finger/pillar-like MC, which may be shocked at the tip, can well explain the X-ray and radio enhancement in the southwest and some infrared filaments there. The SNR-MC interaction is also favored by the relatively elevated 12CO J=2-1/J=1-0 line ratios in the southwestern "pillar tip" and the molecular patch on the northwestern boundary. The redshifted 12CO (J=1-0 and J=2-1) wings (86-90km/s) of an eastern 81km/s molecular patch may be the kinematic evidence for shock-MC interaction. We suggest that the 69km/s MCs are in the foreground based on HI self-absorption while the 84km/s MCs at a distance of 6.2 kpc (the tangent point) are in physical contact with SNR 3C396. The X-ray spectral analysis suggests an SNR age of ~3kyr. The metal enrichment of the X-ray emitting gas in the north and south implies a 13-15Msun B1-B2 progenitor star.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2010

Origin of the dust emission from Tycho's SNR

Aims: We investigate the spatial distribution of dust emission around Tycho's SNR to understand its origin. We distinguish the dust associated with the SNR from that of the surrounding ISM. Methods: We performed mid- to far-infrared imaging observations of the remnant at wavelengths of 9, 15, 18, 24, 65, 90, 140, and 160um using the Infrared Camera and the Far-Infrared Surveyor onboard AKARI. We compared the AKARI images with the Suzaku X-ray image and the 12CO image of Tycho's SNR. Results: All the AKARI images except the 9, 140, and 160um band images show a shell-like emission structure with brightness peaks at the north east (NE) and north west (NW) boundaries, sharply outlining part of the X-ray shell. The 140 and 160um bands are dominated by cold dust emission from the surrounding ISM near the NE boundary. Conclusion: We conclude that the dust emission at the NE boundary comes from the ambient cloud interacting with the shock front, while the origin of the dust emission at the NW boundary is rather unclear because of the absence of prominent interstellar clouds near the corresponding region. We cannot rule out the possibility that the latter is mostly of an SN ejecta origin.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2010

Temperature and Density in the Foot Points of the Molecular Loops in the Galactic Center; Analysis of Multi-J Transitions of 12CO(J=1-0, 3-2, 4-3, 7-6), 13CO(J=1-0) and C18O(J=1-0)

Fukui et al. (2006) discovered two molecular loops in the Galactic center and argued that the foot points of the molecular loops, two bright spots at both loops ends, represent the gas accumulated by the falling motion along the loops, subsequent to magnetic flotation by the Parker instability. We have carried out sensitive CO observations of the foot points toward l=356 deg at a few pc resolution in the six rotational transitions of CO; 12CO(J=1-0, 3-2, 4-3, 7-6), 13CO(J=1-0) and C18O(J=1-0). The high resolution image of 12CO (J=3-2) has revealed the detailed distribution of the high excitation gas including U shapes, the outer boundary of which shows sharp intensity jumps accompanying strong velocity gradients. An analysis of the multi-J CO transitions shows that the temperature is in a range from 30-100 K and density is around 10^3-10^4 cm^-3, confirming that the foot points have high temperature and density although there is no prominent radiative heating source such as high mass stars in or around the loops. We argue that the high temperature is likely due to the shock heating under C-shock condition caused by the magnetic flotation. We made a comparison of the gas distribution with theoretical numerical simulations and note that the U shape is consistent with numerical simulations. We also find that the region of highest temperature of ~100 K or higher inside the U shape corresponds to the spur having an upward flow, additionally heated up either by magnetic reconnection or bouncing in the interaction with the narrow neck at the bottom of the U shape. We note these new findings further reinforce the magnetic floatation interpretation.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2009

I-GALFA: The Inner-Galaxy ALFA Low-Latitude H I Survey

The I-GALFA survey is mapping all the HI in the inner Galactic disk visible to the Arecibo 305m telescope within 10 degrees of the Galactic plane (longitudes of 32 to 77 deg at b=0 deg). The survey, which will obtain 1.3 million independent spectra, became possible with the installation of the 7-beam Arecibo L-Band Feed Array (ALFA) receiver in 2004. ALFA's 3.4 arcmin resolution and tremendous sensitivity offer a great opportunity to observe the fine details of HI in the Galaxy. The I-GALFA survey began in 2008 May and will be completed in 2009 September. The data will be made publicly available when the calibrated and gridded cubes are completed. Further information on the I-GALFA project may be found at www.naic.edu/~galfa.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2009

AKARI Infrared Observations of the Supernova Remnant G292.0+1.8: Unveiling Circumstellar Medium and Supernova Ejecta

We present the results of AKARI observations of the O-rich supernova remnant G292.0+1.8 using six IRC and four FIS bands covering 2.7-26.5 um and 50-180 um, respectively. The AKARI images show two prominent structures; a bright equatorial ring structure and an outer elliptical shell structure. The equatorial ring structure is clumpy and incomplete with its western end opened. The outer shell is almost complete and slightly squeezed along the north-south direction. The central position of the outer shell is ~ 1' northwest from the embedded pulsar and coincides with the center of the equatorial ring structure. The equatorial ring and the elliptical shell structures were partly visible in optical and/or X-rays, but they are much more clearly revealed in our AKARI images. There is no evident difference in infrared colors of the two prominent structures, which is consistent with the previous proposition that both structures are of circumstellar origin. However, we have detected faint infrared emission of a considerably high 15 to 24 um ratio associated with the supernova ejecta in the southeastern and northwestern areas. Our IRC spectra show that the high ratio is at least partly due to the emission lines from Ne ions in the supernova ejecta material. In addition we detect a narrow, elongated feature outside the SNR shell. We derive the physical parameters of the infrared-emitting dust grains in the shocked circumstellar medium and compare the result with model calculations of dust destruction by a SN shock. The AKARI results suggest that the progenitor was at the center of the infrared circumstellar shell in red supergiant stage and that the observed asymmetry in the SN ejecta could be a result of either a dense circumstellar medium in the equatorial plane and/or an asymmetric explosion.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2009

Warm and Dense Molecular Gas in the N159 Region: 12CO J=4-3 and 13CO J=3-2 Observations with NANTEN2 and ASTE

New 12CO J=4-3 and 13CO J=3-2 observations of the N159 region in the Large Magellanic Cloud have been made. The 12CO J=4-3 distribution is separated into three clumps. These new measurements toward the three clumps are used in coupled calculations of molecular rotational excitation and line radiation transfer, along with other transitions of the 12CO as well as the isotope transitions of 13CO. The temperatures and densities are determined to be ~70-80K and ~3x10^3 cm-3 in N159W and N159E and ~30K and ~1.6x10^3 cm-3 in N159S. These results are compared with the star formation activity. The N159E clump is associated with embedded cluster(s) as observed at 24 micron and the derived high temperature is explained as due to the heating by these sources. The N159E clump is likely responsible for a dark lane in a large HII region by the dust extinction. The N159W clump is associated with embedded clusters mainly toward the eastern edge of the clump only. These clusters show offsets of 20"-40" from the 12CO J=4-3 peak and are probably responsible for heating indicated by the derived high temperature. The N159W clump exhibits no sign of star formation toward the 12CO J=4-3 peak position and its western region. We suggest that the N159W peak represents a pre-star-cluster core of ~105M_sol which deserves further detailed studies. Note that recent star formation took place between N159W and N159E as indicated by several star clusters and HII regions, while the natal molecular gas toward the stars have already been dissipated by the ionization and stellar winds of the OB stars. The N159S clump shows little sign of star formation as is consistent with the lower temperature and somewhat lower density. The N159S clump is also a candidate for future star formation.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2009

Infrared Studies of Molecular Shocks in the Supernova Remnant HB 21: II. Thermal Admixture of Shocked H$_2$ Gas in the South

We present near- and mid-infrared observations on the shock-cloud interaction region in the southern part of the supernova remnant HB 21, performed with the InfraRed Camera (IRC) aboard AKARI satellite and the Wide InfraRed Camera (WIRC) at the Palomar 5 m telescope. The IRC 4 um (N4), 7 um (S7), and 11 um (S11) band images and the WIRC H2 v=1->0 S(1) 2.12 um image show similar diffuse features, around a shocked CO cloud. We analyzed the emission through comparison with the H2 line emission of several shock models. The IRC colors are well explained by the thermal admixture model of H2 gas--whose infinitesimal H2 column density has a power-law relation with the temperature $T$, $dN\sim T^{-b}dT$--with n(H2) $\sim3.9\times10^4$ cm^{-2}, $b\sim4.2$, and N(H2;T>100K) $\sim2.8\times10^{21}$ cm^{-2}. We interpreted these parameters with several different pictures of the shock-cloud interactions--multiple planar C-shocks, bow shocks, and shocked clumps--and discuss their weaknesses and strengths. The observed H2 v=1->0 S(1) intensity is four times greater than the prediction from the power-law admixture model, the same tendency as found in the northern part of HB 21 (Paper I). We also explored the limitation of the thermal admixture model with respect to the derived model parameters.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2009

Dense Iron Ejecta and Core-collapse Supernova Explosion in the Young Supernova Remnant G11.2-0.3

We present the results of near-infrared spectroscopic observations of dense ($\simgt$ 10$^3$ cm$^{-3}$) iron ejecta in the young core-collapse supernova remnant G11.2-0.3. Five ejecta knots projected to be close to its center show a large dispersion in their Doppler shifts: two knots in the east are blueshifted by more than 1,000 \kms, while three western knots have relatively small blueshifts of 20-60 \kms. This velocity discrepancy may indicate that the western knots have been significantly decelerated or that there exists a systematic velocity difference among the knots. One ejecta filament in the northwestern boundary, on the other hand, is redshifted by $\simgt$ 200 \kms, while opposite filament in the southeastern boundary shows a negligible radial motion. Some of the knots and filaments have secondary velocity components, and one knot shows a bow shock-like feature in the velocity structure. The iron ejecta appear to be devoid of strong emission from other heavy elements, such as S, which may attest to the alpha-rich freezeout process in the explosive nucleosynthesis of the core-collapse supernova explosion close to its center. The prominent bipolar distribution of the Fe ejecta in the northwestern and southeastern direction, along with the elongation of the central pulsar wind nebula in the perpendicular direction, is consistent with the interpretation that the supernova exploded primarily along the northwestern and southeastern direction.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2008

Infrared Studies of Molecular Shocks in the Supernova Remnant HB21: I. Thermal Admixture of Shocked H_2 Gas in the North

We present near- and mid-infrared observations on the shock-cloud interaction region in the northern part of the supernova remnant HB21, performed with the InfraRed Camera (IRC) aboard AKARI satellite and the Wide InfraRed Camera (WIRC) at the Palomar 5 m telescope. The IRC 7 um (S7), 11 um (S11), and 15 um (L15) band images and the WIRC H2 v = 1 -> 0 S(1) 2.12 um image show similar shock-cloud interaction features. We chose three representative regions, and analyzed their IRC emissions through comparison with H2 line emissions of several shock models. The IRC colors are well explained by the thermal admixture model of H2 gas--whose infinitesimal H2 column density has a power-law relation with the temperature T, dN ~ T^-b dT--with n(H2) ~ 10^3 cm^-3, b ~ 3, and N(H2 ;T > 100K) ~ 3x10^20 cm^-2. The derived b value may be understood by a bow shock picture, whose shape is cycloidal (cuspy) rather than paraboloidal. However, this picture raises another issue that the bow shocks must reside within ~0.01 pc size-scale, smaller than the theoretically expected. Instead, we conjectured a shocked clumpy interstellar medium picture, which may avoid the sizescale issue while explaining the similar model parameters. The observed H2 v = 1 -> 0 S(1) intensities are a factor of ~17 - 33 greater than the prediction from the power-law admixture model. This excess may be attributed to either an extra component of hot H2 gas or to the effects of collisions with hydrogen atoms, omitted in our power-law admixture model, both of which would increase the population in the v = 1 level of H2.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Supernova Remnants in the AKARI IRC Survey of the Large Magellanic Cloud

We present the near- to mid-infared study of supernova remnants (SNRs) using the AKARI IRC Survey of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). The LMC survey observed about a 10 square degree area of the LMC in five bands centered at 3, 7, 11, 15, and 24 \micron using the Infrared Camera (IRC) aboard AKARI. The number of SNRs in the survey area is 21, which is about a half of the known LMC SNRs. We systematically examined the AKARI images and identified eight SNRs with distinguishable infrared emission. All of them were detected at $\gtrsim 10$ \micron and some at 3 and 7 \micron, too. We present their AKARI images and fluxes. In the 11/15 \micron versus 15/24 \micron color-color diagram, the SNRs appear to be aligned along a modified blackbody curve, representing thermal emission from dust at temperatures between 90 and 190 K. There is a good correlation between the 24 \micron and X-ray fluxes of the SNRs. It was also found that there is a good correlation between the 24 \micron and radio fluxes even if there is no direct physical connection between them. We considered the origin of the detected mid-infrared emission in individual SNRs. We conclude that the mid-infrared emissions in five SNRs that show morphologies similar to the X-rays are dominated by thermal emission from hot dust heated by X-ray emitting plasma. Their 15/24 \micron color temperatures are generally higher than the Spitzer 24/70 \micron color temperatures, which suggests that a single-temperature dust model cannot describe the full spectral energy distribution (SED) of the SNRs. It also implies that our understanding of the full SED is essential for estimating the dust destruction rate of grains by SNR shocks.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Discovery of molecular shells associated with supernova remnants. (II) Kesteven 75

The young composite supernova remnant (SNR) Kesteven 75, with a pulsar wind nebula at its center, has an unusual morphology with a bright southern half-shell structure in multiwavelengths. The distance to Kes 75 has long been uncertain. Aiming to address these issues, we have made millimeter spectroscopic observations of the molecular gas toward the remnant. The V_{LSR}~83--96 km/s molecular clouds (MCs) are found to overlap a large north-western region of the remnant and are suggested to be located in front of the SNR along the line of sight. Also in the remnant area, the V_{LSR}= 45--58 km/s MC shows a blue-shifted broadening in the 12CO (J=1-0) line profile and a perturbed position-velocity structure near the edge of the remnant, with the intensity centroid sitting in the northern area of the remnant. In particular, a cavity surrounded by a molecular shell is unveiled in the intensity map in the broadened blue wing (45--51 km/s), and the southern molecular shell follows the bright partial SNR shell seen in X-rays, mid-infrared, and radio continuum. These observational features provide effective evidences for the association of Kes 75 with the adjacent 54 km/s MC. This association leads to a determination of the kinematic distance at ~10.6 kpc to the remnant, which agrees with a location at the far side of the Sagittarius arm. The morphological coincidence of the shell seen in multiwavelengths is consistent with a scenario in which the SNR shock hits a pre-existing dense shell. This dense molecular shell is suggested to likely represent the debris of the cooled, clumpy shell of the progenitor's wind bubble proximately behind the 54 km/s cloud. The discovery of the association with MC provides a possible explanation for the gamma-ray excess of the remnant.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Near-Infrared [Fe II] and H2 Line Observations of the Supernova Remnant 3C 396: Probing the Pre-supernova Circumstellar Materials

We present the results of near-infrared [Fe II] and H2 line imaging and spectroscopic observations of the supernova remnant 3C 396 using the Palomar 5 m Hale telescope. We detect long, filamentary [Fe II] emission delineating the inner edge of the radio emission in the western boundary of the remnant in imaging observations, together with a bright [Fe II] emission clump close to the remnant center. There appears to be faint, diffuse [Fe II] emission between the central clump and the western filamentary emission. The spectroscopic observations determine the expansion velocity of the central clump to be ~56 km/s. This is far smaller than the expansion velocity of 3C 396 obtained from X-ray observations, implying the inhomogeneity of the ambient medium. The electron number density of the [Fe II] emission gas is < 2,000 cm-3. The H2 line emission, on the other hand, lies slightly outside the filamentary [Fe II] emission in the western boundary, and forms a rather straight filament. We suggest that the [Fe II] emission represents dense clumps in the wind material from the red supergiant phase of a Type IIL/b progenitor of 3C 396 which have been swept up by the supernova remnant shocks. The H2 emission may represent either the boundary of a wind bubble produced during the main-sequence phase of the progenitor or molecular clumps left over inside the bubble. We propose that the near-infrared [Fe II] and H2 emission observed in several supernova remnants of Type IIL/b SNe likely has the same origin.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

AKARI IRC survey of the Large Magellanic Cloud: Outline of the survey and initial results

We observed an area of 10 deg^2 of the Large Magellanic Cloud using the Infrared Camera on board AKARI. The observations were carried out using five imaging filters (3, 7, 11, 15, and 24 micron) and a dispersion prism (2 -- 5 micron, $λ/ Δλ$ $\sim$ 20) equipped in the IRC. This paper describes the outline of our survey project and presents some initial results using the imaging data that detected over 5.9x10^5 near-infrared and 6.4x10^4 mid-infrared point sources. The 10 $σ$ detection limits of our survey are about 16.5, 14.0, 12.3, 10.8, and 9.2 in Vega-magnitude at 3, 7, 11, 15, and 24 micron, respectively. The 11 and 15 micron data, which are unique to AKARI IRC, allow us to construct color-magnitude diagrams that are useful to identify stars with circumstellar dust. We found a new sequence in the color-magnitude diagram, which is attributed to red giants with luminosity fainter than that of the tip of the first red giant branch. We suggest that this sequence is likely to be related to the broad emission feature of aluminium oxide at 11.5 micron. The 11 and 15 micron data also indicate that the ([11] - [15]) micron color of both oxygen-rich and carbon-rich red giants once becomes blue and then turns red again in the course of their evolution, probably due to the change in the flux ratio of the silicate or silicon carbide emission feature at 10 or 11.3 micron to the 15 micron flux.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2008

Massive-Star Forming Infrared Loop around the Crab-like Supernova Remnant G54.1+0.3: Post Main-Sequence Triggered Star Formation?

We report the discovery of a star-forming loop around the young, Crab-like supernova remnant (SNR) G54.1+0.3 using the AKARI infrared satellite. The loop consists of at least eleven young stellar objects (YSOs) embedded in a ring-like diffuse emission of radius ~1'. The YSOs are bright in the mid-infrared and are also visible in the Spitzer Space Telescope Galactic plane survey images. Their Spitzer colors are similar to those of class II YSOs in [3.6]-[5.8] but significantly redder in [8]-[24], i.e., 0<[3.6]-[5.8]<1.2 and 5<[8]-[24]<9. Most of them have near-infrared counterparts in the 2MASS JHKs images, and some of them have an optical counterpart too. Their JHKs colors and magnitudes indicate that the YSOs are massive (<= 10 Msun) pre-main-sequence stars at the same distance to the SNR, i.e., 8 kpc, which supports the association of the star-forming loop with the SNR. The dereddened spectral energy distributions are similar to eraly Herbig Be stars, which are early B-type pre-main-sequence stars with inner disks that have been destroyed. The confinement to a loop structure indicates that the YSOs are young, i.e., <= 2 Myr. We propose that their formation is triggered by the progenitor star of G54.1+0.3, which has a mass of <= 15 Msun. The triggering must have occurred near the end of the progenitor's life, possibly after it had evolved off the main sequence.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

Faint HI 21-cm Emission Line Wings at Forbidden-Velocities

We present the results of a search for faint HI 21-cm emission line wings at velocities forbidden by Galactic rotation in the Galactic plane using the Leiden/Dwingeloo HI Survey data and the HI Southern Galactic Plane Survey data. These ``forbidden-velocity wings (FVWs)'' appear as protruding excessive emission in comparison with their surroundings in limited (< 2 deg) spatial regions over velocity extent more than ~20 km/s in large-scale (l-v) diagrams. Their high-velocities imply that there should be some dynamical phenomena associated. We have identified 87 FVWs. We present their catalog, and discuss their distribution and statistical properties. We found that 85% of FVWs are not coincident with known supernova remnants (SNRs), galaxies, or high-velocity clouds. Their natures are currently unknown. We suspect that many of them are fast-moving HI shells and filaments associated with the oldest SNRs that are essentially invisible except via their HI line emission. We discuss other possible origins.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

A Near-Infrared Study of the Highly-Obscured Active Star-Forming Region W51B

We present wide-field JHKs-band photometric observations of the three compact HII regions G48.9-0.3, G49.0-0.3, and G49.2-0.3 in the active star-forming region W51B. The star clusters inside the three compact HII regions show the excess number of stars in the J-Ks histograms compared with reference fields. While the mean color excess ratio E(J-H)/E(H-Ks) of the three compact HII regions are similar to ~ 2.07, the visual extinctions toward them are somewhat different: ~ 17 mag for G48.9-0.3 and G49.0-0.3; ~ 23 mag for G49.2-0.3. Based on their sizes and brightnesses, we suggest that the age of each compact HII region is =< 2 Myr. The inferred total stellar mass, ~ 1.4 x 10^4 M_sun, of W51B makes it one of the most active star forming regions in the Galaxy with the star formation efficiency of ~ 10 %.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2007

SUBARU HDS Observations of a Balmer-Dominated Shock in Tycho's Supernova Remnant

We present an Ha spectral observation of a Balmer-dominated shock on the eastern side of Tycho's supernova remnant using the Subaru Telescope. Utilizing the High Dispersion Spectrograph (HDS), we measure the spatial variation of the line profile between preshock and postshock gas. Our observation clearly shows a broadening and centroid shift of the narrow-component postshock Ha line relative to the Ha emission from the preshock gas. The observation supports the existence of a thin precursor where gas is heated and accelerated ahead of the shock. Furthermore, the spatial profile of the emission ahead of the Balmer filament shows a gradual gradient in the Ha intensity and line width ahead of the shock. We propose that this region (~10^16 cm) is likely to be the spatially resolved precursor. The line width increases from ~30 up to ~45 km/s, and its central velocity shows a redshift of ~5 km/s across the shock front. The characteristics of the precursor are consistent with a cosmic-ray precursor, although the possibility of a fast neutral precursor is not ruled out.

astro-ph↗