arXiv subjects

L. Galbany

Publications and source records attributed to L. Galbany.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources

arXiv2020

A measurement of the Hubble constant from Type II supernovae

Progressive increases in the precision of the Hubble-constant measurement via Cepheid-calibrated Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) have shown a discrepancy of $\sim 4.4σ$ with the current value inferred from Planck satellite measurements of the cosmic microwave background radiation and the standard $Λ$CDM cosmological model. This disagreement does not appear to be due to known systematic errors and may therefore be hinting at new fundamental physics. Although all of the current techniques have their own merits, further improvement in constraining the Hubble constant requires the development of as many independent methods as possible. In this work, we use SNe II as standardisable candles to obtain an independent measurement of the Hubble constant. Using 7 SNe II with host-galaxy distances measured from Cepheid variables or the tip of the red giant branch, we derive H$_0= 75.8^{+5.2}_{-4.9}$ km s$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-1}$ (statistical errors only). Our value favours that obtained from the conventional distance ladder (Cepheids + SNe Ia) and exhibits a difference of 8.4 km s$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-1}$ from the Planck $+Λ$CDM value. Adding an estimate of the systematic errors (2.8 km s$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-1}$) changes the $\sim 1.7σ$ discrepancy with Planck $+Λ$CDM to $\sim 1.4σ$. Including the systematic errors and performing a bootstrap simulation, we confirm that the local H$_0$ value exceeds the value from the early Universe with a confidence level of 95%. As in this work we only exchange SNe II for SNe Ia to measure extragalactic distances, we demonstrate that there is no evidence that SNe Ia are the source of the H$_0$ tension.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

SN 2016gsd: An unusually luminous and linear type II supernova with high velocities

We present observations of the unusually luminous Type II supernova (SN) 2016gsd. With a peak absolute magnitude of V = $-$19.95 $\pm$ 0.08, this object is one of the brightest Type II SNe, and lies in the gap of magnitudes between the majority of Type II SNe and the superluminous SNe. Its light curve shows little evidence of the expected drop from the optically thick phase to the radioactively powered tail. The velocities derived from the absorption in H$α$ are also unusually high with the blue edge tracing the fastest moving gas initially at 20000 km s$^{-1}$, and then declining approximately linearly to 15000 km s$^{-1}$ over $\sim$100 d. The dwarf host galaxy of the SN indicates a low-metallicity progenitor which may also contribute to the weakness of the metal lines in its spectra. We examine SN 2016gsd with reference to similarly luminous, linear Type II SNe such as SNe 1979C and 1998S, and discuss the interpretation of its observational characteristics. We compare the observations with a model produced by the JEKYLL code and find that a massive star with a depleted and inflated hydrogen envelope struggles to reproduce the high luminosity and extreme linearity of SN 2016gsd. Instead, we suggest that the influence of interaction between the SN ejecta and circumstellar material can explain the majority of the observed properties of the SN. The high velocities and strong H$α$ absorption present throughout the evolution of the SN may imply a circumstellar medium configured in an asymmetric geometry.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

OzDES multi-object fibre spectroscopy for the Dark Energy Survey: Results and second data release

We present a description of the Australian Dark Energy Survey (OzDES) and summarise the results from its six years of operations. Using the 2dF fibre positioner and AAOmega spectrograph on the 3.9-metre Anglo-Australian Telescope, OzDES has monitored 771 AGN, classified hundreds of supernovae, and obtained redshifts for thousands of galaxies that hosted a transient within the 10 deep fields of the Dark Energy Survey. We also present the second OzDES data release, containing the redshifts of almost 30,000 sources, some as faint as $r_{\mathrm AB}=24$ mag, and 375,000 individual spectra. These data, in combination with the time-series photometry from the Dark Energy Survey, will be used to measure the expansion history of the Universe out to $z\sim1.2$ and the masses of hundreds of black holes out to $z\sim4$. OzDES is a template for future surveys that combine simultaneous monitoring of targets with wide-field imaging cameras and wide-field multi-object spectrographs.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

DES16C3cje: A low-luminosity, long-lived supernova

We present DES16C3cje, a low-luminosity, long-lived type II supernova (SN II) at redshift 0.0618, detected by the Dark Energy Survey (DES). DES16C3cje is a unique SN. The spectra are characterized by extremely narrow photospheric lines corresponding to very low expansion velocities of $\lesssim1500$ km s$^{-1}$, and the light curve shows an initial peak that fades after 50 days before slowly rebrightening over a further 100 days to reach an absolute brightness of M$_r\sim -15.5$ mag. The decline rate of the late-time light curve is then slower than that expected from the powering by radioactive decay of $^{56}$Co but is comparable to that expected from accretion power. Comparing the bolometric light curve with hydrodynamical models, we find that DES16C3cje can be explained by either i) a low explosion energy (0.11 foe) and relatively large $^{56}$Ni production of 0.075 M$_{\odot}$ from a $\sim15$ M$_{\odot}$ red supergiant progenitor typical of other SNe II, or ii) a relatively compact $\sim40$ M$_{\odot}$ star, explosion energy of 1 foe, and 0.08 M$_{\odot}$ of $^{56}$Ni. Both scenarios require additional energy input to explain the late-time light curve, which is consistent with fallback accretion at a rate of $\sim0.5\times{10^{-8}}$ M$_{\odot}$ s$^{-1}$.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2020

Discovery and Rapid Follow-up Observations of the Unusual Type II SN 2018ivc in NGC 1068

We present the discovery and high-cadence follow-up observations of SN 2018ivc, an unusual Type II supernova that exploded in NGC 1068 (D=10.1 Mpc). The light curve of SN 2018ivc declines piecewise-linearly, changing slope frequently, with four clear slope changes in the first 30 days of evolution. This rapidly changing light curve indicates that interaction between the circumstellar material and ejecta plays a significant role in the evolution. Circumstellar interaction is further supported by a strong X-ray detection. The spectra are rapidly evolving and dominated by hydrogen, helium, and calcium emission lines. We identify a rare high-velocity emission-line feature blueshifted at ~7800 km/s (in Ha, Hb, Pb, Pg, HeI, CaII), which is visible from day 18 until at least day 78 and could be evidence of an asymmetric progenitor or explosion. From the overall similarity between SN 2018ivc and SN 1996al, the \Ha{} equivalent width of its parent HII region, and constraints from pre-explosion archival Hubble Space Telescope images, we find that the progenitor of SN 2018ivc could be as massive as 52 Msun but is more likely <12 Msun. SN 2018ivc demonstrates the importance of the early discovery and rapid follow-up observations of nearby supernovae to study the physics and progenitors of these cosmic explosions.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Studying Type II supernovae as cosmological standard candles using the Dark Energy Survey

Despite vast improvements in the measurement of the cosmological parameters, the nature of dark energy and an accurate value of the Hubble constant (H$_0$) in the Hubble-Lemaître law remain unknown. To break the current impasse, it is necessary to develop as many independent techniques as possible, such as the use of Type II supernovae (SNe II). The goal of this paper is to demonstrate the utility of SNe II for deriving accurate extragalactic distances, which will be an asset for the next generation of telescopes where more-distant SNe II will be discovered. More specifically, we present a sample from the Dark Energy Survey Supernova Program (DES-SN) consisting of 15 SNe II with photometric and spectroscopic information spanning a redshift range up to 0.35. Combining our DES SNe with publicly available samples, and using the standard candle method (SCM), we construct the largest available Hubble diagram with SNe II in the Hubble flow (70 SNe II) and find an observed dispersion of 0.27 mag. We demonstrate that adding a colour term to the SN II standardisation does not reduce the scatter in the Hubble diagram. Although SNe II are viable as distance indicators, this work points out important issues for improving their utility as independent extragalactic beacons: find new correlations, define a more standard subclass of SNe II, construct new SN II templates, and dedicate more observing time to high-redshift SNe II. Finally, for the first time, we perform simulations to estimate the redshift-dependent distance-modulus bias due to selection effects.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

The Host Galaxies of Rapidly Evolving Transients in the Dark Energy Survey

Rapidly evolving transients (RETs), also termed fast blue optical transients (FBOTs), are a distinct class of astrophysical event. They are characterised by lightcurves that decline much faster than common classes supernovae (SNe), span vast ranges in peak luminosity and can be seen to redshifts greater than 1. Their evolution on fast timescales has hindered high quality follow-up observations, and thus their origin and explosion/emission mechanism remains unexplained. In this paper we define the largest sample of RETs to date, comprising 106 objects from the Dark Energy Survey, and perform the most comprehensive analysis of RET host galaxies. Using deep-stacked photometry and emission-lines from OzDES spectroscopy, we derive stellar masses and star-formation rates (SFRs) for 49 host galaxies, and metallicities for 37. We find that RETs explode exclusively in star-forming galaxies and are thus likely associated with massive stars. Comparing RET hosts to samples of host galaxies of other explosive transients as well as field galaxies, we find that RETs prefer galaxies with high specific SFRs, indicating a link to young stellar populations, similar to stripped-envelope SNe. RET hosts appear to show a lack of chemical enrichment, their metallicities akin to long duration gamma-ray bursts and superluminous SN host galaxies. There are no clear relationships between properties of the host galaxies and the peak magnitudes or decline rates of the transients themselves.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

A Blast from the Pasture: Studying the environment of AT 2018cow with MUSE

AT 2018cow was the nearest and best studied example of a new breed of extra-galactic, luminous and rapidly-evolving transient. Both the progenitor systems and explosion mechanisms of these rapid transients remain a mystery - the energetics, spectral signatures, and timescales make them challenging to interpret in established classes of supernovae and tidal disruption events. The rich, multi-wavelength data-set of AT 2018cow has still left several interpretations viable to explain the nature of this event. In this paper we analyse integral-field spectroscopic data of the host galaxy, CGCG 137-068, to compare environmental constraints with leading progenitor models. We find the explosion site of AT 2018cow to be very typical of core-collapse supernovae (known to form from stars with MZAMS ~8-25M), and infer a young stellar population age at the explosion site of few times 10Myr, at slightly sub-solar metallicity. When comparing to expectations for exotic intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) tidal disruption events,we find no evidence for a potential host system of the IMBH. In particular, there are no abrupt changes in metallicity or kinematics in the vicinity of the explosion site, arguing against the presence of a distinct host system. The proximity of AT 2018cow to strong star-formation in the host galaxy makes us favour a massive stellar progenitor for this event.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

The Mystery of Photometric Twins DES17X1boj and DES16E2bjy

We present an analysis of DES17X1boj and DES16E2bjy, two peculiar transients discovered by the Dark Energy Survey (DES). They exhibit nearly identical double-peaked light curves which reach very different maximum luminosities (M$_\mathrm{r}$ = -15.4 and M$_\mathrm{r}$ = -17.9, respectively). The light curve evolution of these events is highly atypical and has not been reported before. The transients are found in different host environments: DES17X1boj was found near the nucleus of a spiral galaxy, while DES16E2bjy is located in the outskirts of a passive red galaxy. Early photometric data is well fitted with a blackbody and the resulting moderate photospheric expansion velocities (1800 km/s for DES17X1boj and 4800 km/s for DES16E2bjy) suggest an explosive or eruptive origin. Additionally, a feature identified as high-velocity CaII absorption (v $\approx$ 9400km/s) in the near-peak spectrum of DES17X1boj may imply that it is a supernova. While similar light curve evolution suggests a similar physical origin for these two transients, we are not able to identify or characterise the progenitors.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Carnegie Supernova Project-II: A new method to photometrically identify sub-types of extreme Type Ia Supernovae

We present a new method to photometrically delineate between various sub-types of type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia). Using the color-stretch parameters, $s_{BV}$ or $s_{gr}$, and the time of i-band primary maximum relative to the B-band or g-band maximum it is demonstrated that 2003fg-like, 1991bg-like, and 2002cx-like SNe Ia can readily be identified. In the cases of these extreme SNe Ia, their primary i-band maximum occurs after the time of the B or g band maxima. We suggest that the timing of the i-band maximum can reveal the physical state of the SN Ia explosion as it traces: i) the speed of the recombination front of iron group elements in the ejecta, ii) the temperature evolution and rate of adiabatic cooling in the ejecta and, iii) the presence of interaction with a stellar envelope. This photometric sub-typing can be used in conjunction with other SNe analysis, such as the Branch diagram, to examine the physics and diversity of SNe Ia. The results here can also be used to screen out non-Ia SNe from cosmological samples that do not have complete spectroscopic typing. Finally, as future surveys like LSST create large databases of light curves of many objects this photometric identification can be used to readily identify and study the rates and bulk properties of peculiar SNe Ia.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

HII regions in the CALIFA survey: I. Catalog presentation

We present a new catalog of HII regions based on the integral field spectroscopy (IFS) data of the extended CALIFA and PISCO samples. The selection of HII regions was based on two assumptions: a clumpy structure with high contrast of H$α$ emission and an underlying stellar population comprising young stars. The catalog provides the spectroscopic information of 26,408 individual regions corresponding to 924 galaxies, including the flux intensities and equivalent widths of 51 emission lines covering the wavelength range between 3745-7200A. To our knowledge, this is the largest catalog of spectroscopic properties of HII regions. We explore a new approach to decontaminate the emission lines from diffuse ionized gas contribution. This diffuse gas correction was estimated to correct every emission line within the considered spectral range. With the catalog of HII regions corrected, new demarcation lines are proposed for the classical diagnostic diagrams. Finally, we study the properties of the underlying stellar populations of the HII regions. It was found that there is a direct relationship between the ionization conditions on the nebulae and the properties of stellar populations besides the physicals condition on the ionized regions.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

Asteroids' Size Distribution and Colors from HiTS

We report the observations of solar system objects during the 2015 campaign of the High cadence Transient Survey (HiTS). We found 5740 bodies (mostly Main Belt asteroids), 1203 of which were detected in different nights and in $g'$ and $r'$. Objects were linked in the barycenter system and their orbital parameters were computed assuming Keplerian motion. We identified 6 near Earth objects, 1738 Main Belt asteroids and 4 Trans-Neptunian objects. We did not find a $g'-r'$ color-size correlation for $14<H_{g'}<18$ ($1<D<10$ km) asteroids. We show asteroids' colors are disturbed by HiTS' 1.6 hour cadence and estimate that observations should be separated by at most 14 minutes to avoid confusion in future wide-field surveys like LSST. The size distribution for the Main Belt objects can be characterized as a simple power law with slope $\sim0.9$, steeper than in any other survey, while data from HiTS 2014's campaign is consistent with previous ones (slopes $\sim0.68$ at the bright end and $\sim0.34$ at the faint end). This difference is likely due to the ecliptic distribution of the Main Belt since 2015's campaign surveyed farther from the ecliptic than did 2014's and most previous surveys.

astro-ph.EP↗

arXiv2020

The rise and fall of an extraordinary Ca-rich transient -- The discovery of ATLAS19dqr/SN 2019bkc

This work presents the observations and analysis of ATLAS19dqr/SN 2019bkc, an extraordinary rapidly evolving transient event located in an isolated environment, tens of kiloparsecs from any likely host. Its light curves rise to maximum light in $5-6$ d and then display a decline of $Δm_{15} \sim5$ mag. With such a pronounced decay, it has one of the most rapidly evolving light curves known for a stellar explosion. The early spectra show similarities to normal and `ultra-stripped' type Ic SNe, but the early nebular phase spectra, which were reached just over two weeks after explosion, display prominent calcium lines, marking SN 2019bkc as a Ca-rich transient. The Ca emission lines at this phase show an unprecedented and unexplained blueshift of 10,000 -- 12,000 km/s. Modelling of the light curve and the early spectra suggests that the transient had a low ejecta mass of $0.2 - 0.4$ M$_\odot$ and a low kinetic energy of $ (2-4)\times 10^{50}$ erg, giving a specific kinetic energy $\sim1$ [$10^{51}$ erg]/M$_\odot$. The origin of this event cannot be unambiguously defined. While the abundance distribution used to model the spectra marginally favours a progenitor of white dwarf origin through the tentative identification of \ArII, the specific kinetic energy, which is defined by the explosion mechanism, is found to be more similar to an ultra-stripped core-collapse events. SN 2019bkc adds to the diverse range of physical properties shown by Ca-rich events.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Supernova Siblings: Assessing the Consistency of Properties of Type Ia Supernovae that Share the Same Parent Galaxies

While many studies have shown a correlation between properties of the light curves of Type Ia SN (SNe Ia) and properties of their host galaxies, it remains unclear what is driving these correlations. We introduce a new direct method to study these correlations by analyzing `parent' galaxies that host multiple SNe Ia 'siblings'. Here, we search the Dark Energy Survey SN sample, one of the largest samples of discovered SNe, and find 8 galaxies that hosted two likely Type Ia SNe. Comparing the light-curve properties of these SNe and recovered distances from the light curves, we find no better agreement between properties of SNe in the same galaxy as any random pair of galaxies, with the exception of the SN light-curve stretch. We show at $2.8σ$ significance that at least 1/2 of the intrinsic scatter of SNe Ia distance modulus residuals is not from common host properties. We also discuss the robustness with which we could make this evaluation with LSST, which will find $100\times$ more pairs of galaxies, and pave a new line of study on the consistency of Type Ia supernovae in the same parent galaxies. Finally, we argue that it is unlikely some of these SNe are actually single, lensed SN with multiple images.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

First Cosmology Results using Type Ia Supernovae from the Dark Energy Survey: The Effect of Host Galaxy Properties on Supernova Luminosity

We present improved photometric measurements for the host galaxies of 206 spectroscopically confirmed type Ia supernovae discovered by the Dark Energy Survey Supernova Program (DES-SN) and used in the first DES-SN cosmological analysis. Fitting spectral energy distributions to the $griz$ photometric measurements of the DES-SN host galaxies, we derive stellar masses and star-formation rates. For the DES-SN sample, when considering a 5D ($z$, $x_1$, $c$, $α$, $β$) bias correction, we find evidence of a Hubble residual `mass step', where SNe Ia in high mass galaxies ($>10^{10} \textrm{M}_{\odot}$) are intrinsically more luminous (after correction) than their low mass counterparts by $γ=0.040\pm0.019$mag. This value is larger by $0.031$mag than the value found in the first DES-SN cosmological analysis. This difference is due to a combination of updated photometric measurements and improved star formation histories and is not from host-galaxy misidentification. When using a 1D (redshift-only) bias correction the inferred mass step is larger, with $γ=0.066\pm0.020$mag. The 1D-5D $γ$ difference for DES-SN is $0.026\pm0.009$mag. We show that this difference is due to a strong correlation between host galaxy stellar mass and the $x_1$ component of the 5D distance-bias correction. To better understand this effect, we include an intrinsic correlation between light-curve width and stellar mass in simulated SN Ia samples. We show that a 5D fit recovers $γ$ with $-9$mmag bias compared to a $+2$mmag bias for a 1D fit. This difference can explain part of the discrepancy seen in the data. Improvements in modeling correlations between galaxy properties and SN is necessary to determine the implications for $γ$ and ensure unbiased precision estimates of the dark energy equation-of-state as we enter the era of LSST.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

Supernova Host Galaxies in the Dark Energy Survey: I. Deep Coadds, Photometry, and Stellar Masses

The five-year Dark Energy Survey supernova programme (DES-SN) is one of the largest and deepest transient surveys to date in terms of volume and number of supernovae. Identifying and characterising the host galaxies of transients plays a key role in their classification, the study of their formation mechanisms, and the cosmological analyses. To derive accurate host galaxy properties, we create depth-optimised coadds using single-epoch DES-SN images that are selected based on sky and atmospheric conditions. For each of the five DES-SN seasons, a separate coadd is made from the other 4 seasons such that each SN has a corresponding deep coadd with no contaminating SN emission. The coadds reach limiting magnitudes of order $\sim 27$ in $g$-band, and have a much smaller magnitude uncertainty than the previous DES-SN host templates, particularly for faint objects. We present the resulting multi-band photometry of host galaxies for samples of spectroscopically confirmed type Ia (SNe Ia), core-collapse (CCSNe), and superluminous (SLSNe) as well as rapidly evolving transients (RETs) discovered by DES-SN. We derive host galaxy stellar masses and probabilistically compare stellar-mass distributions to samples from other surveys. We find that the DES spectroscopically confirmed sample of SNe Ia selects preferentially fewer high mass hosts at high redshift compared to other surveys, while at low redshift the distributions are consistent. DES CCSNe and SLSNe hosts are similar to other samples, while RET hosts are unlike the hosts of any other transients, although these differences have not been disentangled from selection effects.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2019

Galaxies hosting an AGN: a view from the CALIFA survey

We study the presence of optically-selected Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) within a sample of 867 galaxies extracted from the extended {\it Calar-Alto Legacy Integral Field spectroscopy Area} (eCALIFA) spanning all morphological classes. We identify 10 Type-I and 24 Type-II AGNs, amounting to $\sim4$ per cent of our sample, similar to the fraction reported by previous explorations in the same redshift range. We compare the integrated properties of the ionized and molecular gas, and stellar population of AGN hosts and their non-active counterparts, combining them with morphological information. The AGN hosts are found in transitory parts (i.e. green-valley) in almost all analysed properties which present bimodal distributions (i.e. a region where reside star-forming galaxies and another with quiescent/retired ones). Regarding morphology, we find AGN hosts among the most massive galaxies, with enhanced central stellar-mass surface density in comparison to the average population at each morphological type. Moreover, their distribution peaks at the Sab-Sb classes and none are found among very late-type galaxies (> Scd). Finally, we inspect how the AGN could act in their hosts regarding the quenching of star-formation. The main role of the AGN in the quenching process appears to be the removal (or heating) of molecular gas, rather than an additional suppression of the already observed decrease of the star-formation efficiency from late-to-early type galaxies.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2019

J-PLUS: Tools to identify compact planetary nebulae in the Javalambre and southern photometric local universe surveys

From the approximately $\sim$3,500 planetary nebulae (PNe) discovered in our Galaxy, only 14 are known to be members of the Galactic halo. Nevertheless, a systematic search for halo PNe has never been performed. In this study, we present new photometric diagnostic tools to identify compact PNe in the Galactic halo by making use of the novel 12-filter system projects, J-PLUS (Javalambre Photometric Local Universe Survey) and S-PLUS (Southern-Photometric Local Universe Survey). We reconstructed the IPHAS (Isaac Newton Telescope (INT) Photometric H$α$ Survey of the Northern Galactic Plane) diagnostic diagram and propose four new ones using i) the J-PLUS and S-PLUS synthetic photometry for a grid of photo-ionisation models of halo PNe, ii) several observed halo PNe, as well as iii) a number of other emission-line objects that resemble PNe. All colour-colour diagnostic diagrams are validated using two known halo PNe observed by J-PLUS during the scientific verification phase and the first data release (DR1) of S-PLUS and the DR1 of J-PLUS. By applying our criteria to the DR1s ($\sim$1,190 deg$^2$), we identified one PN candidate. However, optical follow-up spectroscopy proved it to be a H II region belonging to the UGC 5272 galaxy. Here, we also discuss the PN and two H II galaxies recovered by these selection criteria. Finally, the cross-matching with the most updated PNe catalogue (HASH) helped us to highlight the potential of these surveys, since we recover all the known PNe in the observed area. The tools here proposed to identify PNe and separate them from their emission-line contaminants proved to be very efficient thanks to the combination of many colours, even when applied -like in the present work- to an automatic photometric search that is limited to compact PNe.

astro-ph.GA↗