arXiv subjects

M. Gilfanov

Publications and source records attributed to M. Gilfanov.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Spectroscopic galaxy redshifts in the Peanut cluster -- a massive nearly head-on cluster merger shortly after pericenter passage

The Peanut cluster (SRGe J023820.8+200556, SRGe CL0238.3+2005, $z_{spec}$ = 0.42) has recently emerged as a candidate for a rare, massive merger, potentially analogous to the Bullet cluster. We present the results of optical identification and spectroscopic redshift measurements for 31 galaxies in the Peanut cluster, including 26 new redshifts obtained with the 6-m telescope BTA (Big Telescope Alt-azimuthal) at SAO RAS between October 2024 and January 2025. The derived distribution of line-of-sight velocities reveals the possible presence of two subclusters with a line-of-sight velocity difference of ~2000 km/s. However, statistical tests and the Dressler-Schectman test show that the hypothesis that the observed velocity distribution can be described by a normal distribution for a single cluster cannot be ruled out, and the evidence for the existence of two gravitationally bound substructures remains ambiguous. Assuming a single cluster with the normal velocity distribution, the estimated galaxy velocity dispersion is $σ_{los} = 1455 \pm 83$ km/s, corresponding to the total cluster mass of $M_{200} = 2 \times 10^{15} M_\odot$ based on the mass-velocity dispersion scaling relation. In either scenario -- a single extremely massive cluster or an ongoing merger -- the Peanut cluster appears to be a very rare and peculiar object, comparable to such extreme systems as the Bullet cluster (1E 0657-56) or El Gordo (ACT-CL J0102-4915).

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The ambiguous AT2022rze: Changing-look AGN mimicking a supernova in a merging galaxy system

AT2022rze is a luminous, ambiguous transient located South-East of the geometric center of its host galaxy at redshift z = 0.08. The host appears to be formed by a merging galaxy system. The observed characteristics of AT2022rze are reminiscent of active galactic nuclei (AGN), tidal disruption events (TDEs), and superluminous supernovae (SLSNe). The transient reached a peak absolute magnitude of -20.2 +- 0.2 mag, showing a sharp rise (trise,1/e = 27.5 +- 0.6 days) followed by a slow decline (tdec,1/e = 382.9 +- 0.6). Its bumpy light curve and narrow Balmer lines indicate the presence of gas (and dust). Its light curve shows rather red colors, indicating that the transient could be affected by significant host extinction. The spectra reveal coronal lines, indicative of high-energy (X-ray/UV) emission. Archival data reveal no prior activity at this location, disfavoring a steady-state AGN, although an optical spectrum obtained prior to the transient is consistent with an AGN classification of the host. Based on this, we conclude that the transient most likely represents a Changing-look AGN at the center of the smallest component of the merging system.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

The stellar activity-rotation-age relationship under the lens of asteroseismology

In low-mass stars, the connection between magnetic activity, rotation period, and age provides key insights into the functioning of dynamos. Fully understanding the activity-rotation-age relationship requires stars with precise fundamental parameters, measured rotation periods, and reliable magnetic activity indicators (e.g. X-ray luminosity). Thanks to space-based photometry, asteroseismology is now the leading method for determining stellar parameters with unprecedented precision and accuracy. The best-characterized solar-like stars compose the Kepler LEGACY sample, with highest-quality asteroseismic data for 66 stars, most of which have measured rotation periods. In the X-ray band, these stars were observed by the ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array (eROSITA) telescope on the Russian Spektrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) satellite in the course of its all-sky survey. We reviewed different components of the stellar activity-rotation-age relationship using the largest sample of solar-like stars with highly accurate fundamental parameters from asteroseismology, along with measured rotation periods and X-ray luminosities. We cross-correlated the Kepler LEGACY sample with the SRG/eROSITA source catalogue, finding X-ray detections for 13 of them. We derived their fundamental parameters using the Forward and Inversion COmbination procedure and revisited widely studied activity-age and activity-rotation relationships by consistently incorporating our 13-star subsample with literature samples. By implementing revised activity-rotation-age relationships in a Star-Planet Interaction code to compute X-ray luminosity tracks and comparing the results with observations, we found improved agreement for 7 stars of our subsample. We explored the effect of the revised relationships on the mass loss of planets in the radius valley, finding a modest impact on planet size distributions.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2024

eUDS: The SRG/eROSITA X-ray Survey of the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey Field. Catalogue of Sources

The eROSITA X-ray telescope on board the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) spacecraft observed the field of the UKIDSS Ultra-Deep Survey (UDS) in August-September 2019, during its flight to Sun-Earth L2 point. The resulting eROSITA UDS (or eUDS) survey was thus the first eROSITA X-ray imaging survey, which demonstrated the capability of the telescope to perform uniform observations of large sky areas. With a moderate single-camera exposure of 150 ks, eUDS covered ~5 deg^2 with the limiting flux ranging between 4E-15 and 5E-14 erg/s/cm^2, in the 0.3-2.3 keV band. We present a catalogue of 647 sources detected at likelihood >10 (~4 sigma) during the eUDS. The catalogue provides information on the source fluxes in the main energy band 0.3-2.3 keV and forced photometry in a number of bands between 0.3 and 8 keV. Using the deeper 4XMM-DR12 catalogue, we have identified 22 strongly variable objects that have brightened or faded by at least a factor of ten during the eROSITA observations compared to previous observations by XMM-Newton. We also provide a catalogue of 22 sources detected by eROSITA in the hard energy band of 2.3-5 keV.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

Optical identification and follow-up observations of SRGA J213151.5+491400 -- a new magnetic cataclysmic variable discovered with SRG Observatory

We report results of optical identification and multi-wavelength study of a new polar-type magnetic cataclysmic variable (MCV), SRGA J213151.5+491400, discovered by Spectrum Roentgen-Gamma ($SRG$) observatory in the course of the all-sky survey. We present optical data from telescopes in Turkey (RTT-150 and T100 at the TÜBITAK National Observatory), and in Russia (6-m and 1-m at SAO RAS), together with the X-ray data obtained with $ART-XC$ and $eROSITA$ telescopes aboard $SRG$ and the $NICER$ observatory. We detect SRGA J213151.5+491400 in a high state in 2020 (17.9 mag) that decreases about 3 mag into a low state (21 mag) in 2021. We find only one significant period using optical photometric time series analysis which reveals the white dwarf spin/orbital period to be 0.059710(1) days (85.982 min). The long slit spectroscopy in the high state yields a power law continuum increasing towards the blue with a prominent He II line along with the Balmer line emissions with no cyclotron humps; consistent with MCV nature. Doppler Tomography confirms the polar nature revealing ballistic stream accretion along with magnetic stream during the high state. These characteristics show that the new source is a polar-type MCV. $SRG$ $ART-XC$ detections yield an X-ray flux of (4.0-7.0)$\times$10$^{-12}$ erg cm$^2$ s$^{-1}$ in the high state. $eROSITA$ detects a dominating hot plasma component (kT$_{\rm{max}}$ $>$ 21 keV in the high state) declining to (4.0-6.0)$\times$10$^{-13}$ erg cm$^2$ s$^{-1}$ in 2021 (low state). The $NICER$ data obtained in the low state reveal a two-pole accretor showing a soft X-ray component at (6-7)$σ$ significance with a blackbody temperature of 15-18 eV. A soft X-ray component has never been detected for a polar in the low state before.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

The SRG X-ray orbital observatory, its telescopes and first scientific results

The orbital observatory Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG), equipped with the grazing-incidence X-ray telescopes Mikhail Pavlinsky ART-XC and eROSITA, was launched by Roscosmos to the Lagrange L2 point of the Sun-Earth system on July 13, 2019. The launch was carried out from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by a Proton-M rocket with a DM-03 upper stage. The German telescope eROSITA was installed on SRG under an agreement between Roskosmos and the DLR, the German Aerospace Agency. In December 2019, SRG started to perform its main scientific task: scanning the celestial sphere to obtain X-ray maps of the entire sky in several energy ranges (from 0.2 to 8 keV with eROSITA, and from 4 to 30 keV with ART-XC). By mid-June 2021, the third six-month all-sky survey had been completed. Over a period of four years, it is planned to obtain eight independent maps of the entire sky in each of the energy ranges. The sum of these maps will provide high sensitivity and reveal more than three million quasars and over one hundred thousand massive galaxy clusters and galaxy groups. The availability of eight sky maps will enable monitoring of long-term variability (every six months) of a huge number of extragalactic and Galactic X-ray sources, including hundreds of thousands of stars with hot coronae. The rotation of the satellite around the axis directed toward the Sun with a period of four hours enables tracking the faster variability of bright X-ray sources during one day every half year. The chosen strategy of scanning the sky leads to the formation of deep survey zones near both ecliptic poles. The paper presents sky maps obtained by the telescopes on board SRG during the first survey of the entire sky and a number of results of deep observations performed during the flight to the L2 point in the frame of the performance verification program.(Abriged)

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

Identification of 3 cataclysmic variables detected by the ART-XC and eROSITA telescopes aboard SRG during the all-sky X-ray survey

We report the discovery of three previously unknown cataclysmic variables in the data of the first year of the all-sky X-ray survey by the SRG orbital observatory. The sources were selected due to their brightness in the 4--12 keV band in the data of the Mikhail Pavlinsky ART-XC telescope. They are also detected by the eROSITA telescope, which provided accurate localizations and spectral data for broad-band spectral analysis. All three objects had been previously known as X-ray sources from the ROSAT all-sky survey and XMM-Newton slew survey, but their nature remained unknown. The X-ray spectra obtained by eROSITA and ART-XC are consistent with optically thin thermal emission with a temperature kT>~15 keV for SRGAJ194638.9+704552 and SRGAJ225412.8+690658 and kT>~5 keV for SRGAJ204547.8+672642. This, together with the inferred high X-ray luminosities ($2\times 10^{32}$-$3\times 10^{33}$ erg s$^{-1}$), strongly suggests that all three sources are CVs. We have obtained optical photometry and spectroscopy for these objects using the AZT-33IK 1.6-m telescope of the Sayan Observatory. The optical properties confirm the CV nature of the objects. We conclude that SRGAJ194638.9+704552 is an intermediate polar, SRGAJ204547.8+672642 is most likely a polar or an intermediate polar, and SRGAJ225412.8+690658 can be either a magnetic or a non-magnetic CV. We also measured an orbital period of 2.98~hours for SRGAJ204547.8+672642, based on TESS data. Three out of the planned eight SRG all-sky surveys have now been completed. We expect to find plenty of new CVs during the survey and to continue our optical follow-up program.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

X-ray observations of historical classical nova counterparts with eROSITA telescope aboard SRG orbital observatory during the all-sky survey

X-ray emission from counterparts of historical classical novae (CNe) in our Galaxy is studied. To this end, we use data from three SRG/eROSITA sky surveys in the hemisphere analyzed by the RU eROSITA consortium. Out of 309 historical CNe, X-ray emission has been detected from 52 sources with 0.3-2.3 keV luminosities in the $\rm L_X\approx 10^{30}\sim 10^{34}$ erg/s range. Among them, two sources have supersoft spectra and are associated with the post-nova supersoft X-ray emission. Hardness of X-ray spectra of some of the remaining sources tentatively suggests that magnetized white dwarfs (WDs) may account for some fraction of CN counterparts detected in X-rays. This hypothesis will be further tested in the course of the following SRG/eROSITA sky surveys. The CN counterparts represent a bona fide sample of accreting WDs with unstable hydrogen burning on their surface, while their X-ray luminosity in quiescence is a reasonable proxy for the accretion rate in the binary system. Using this fact, we have constructed the accretion rate distribution of WDs with unstable hydrogen burning and compared it with the accretion rate distribution of known steady supersoft X-ray sources in our Galaxy and nearby external galaxies. There is a pronounced dichotomy between these two distributions with the CN counterparts and the steady supersoft sources occupying different domains along the mass accretion rate axis, in accordance with the predictions of the theory of hydrogen burning on the WD surface.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

First tidal disruption events discovered by SRG/eROSITA: X-ray/optical properties and X-ray luminosity function at z<0.6

We present the first sample of tidal disruption events (TDEs) discovered during the SRG all-sky survey. These 13 events were selected among X-ray transients detected in the 0<l<180 deg hemisphere by eROSITA during its second sky survey (10 June - 14 December 2020) and confirmed by optical follow-up observations. The most distant event occurred at z=0.581. One TDE continued to brighten at least 6 months. The X-ray spectra are consistent with nearly critical accretion onto black holes of a few 10^3 to 10^8 M_Sun, although supercritical accretion is possibly taking place. In two TDEs, a spectral hardening is observed 6 months after the discovery. Four TDEs showed an optical brightening apart from the X-ray outburst. The other 9 TDEs demonstrate no optical activity. All 13 TDEs are optically faint, with Lopt/Lx<0.3 (Lopt and Lx being the g-band and 0.2-6 keV luminosity, respectively). We have constructed a TDE X-ray luminosity function, which can be fit by a power law with a slope of -0.6+/-0.2, similar to the trend observed for optically selected TDEs. The total rate is estimated at (1.1+/-0.5)10^-5 TDEs per galaxy per year, an order of magnitude lower than inferred from optical studies. This suggests that X-ray bright events constitute a minority of TDEs, consistent with models predicting that X-rays can only be observed from directions close to the axis of a thick accretion disk formed from the stellar debris. Our TDE detection threshold can be lowered by a factor of ~2, which should allow a detection of ~700 TDEs by the end of the SRG survey.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2021

XMM-Newton observations of the extremely X-ray luminous quasar CFHQS J142952+544717=SRGE J142952.1+544716 at redshift z=6.18

We present results from a 20 ks XMM-Newton DDT observation of the radio-load quasar CFHQS J142952+544717 at z=6.18, whose extreme X-ray luminosity was recently revealed by the SRG/eROSITA telescope in the course of its first all-sky survey. The quasar has been confidently detected with a total of $\sim 1400$ net counts in the 0.2-10 keV energy band (1.4 to 72 keV in the object's rest frame). Its measured spectrum is unusually soft and can be described by an absorbed power-law model with a photon index of $Γ= 2.5\pm0.2$. There are no signs of a high-energy cutoff or reflected component, with an 90 % upper limit on the fluorescence iron K$α$ equivalent width of $\approx 290$ eV and the corresponding upper limit on the iron K-edge absorption depth of 0.6. We have detected, at the $> 95\%$ confidence level, an excess absorption above the Galactic value, corresponding to a column density $N_H= 3\pm2 \times 10^{22}$ cm$^{-2}$ of material located at z=6.18. The intrinsic luminosity of CFHQS J142952+544717 in the 1.4 to 72 keV energy band is found to be $5.5_{-0.6}^{+0.8} \times 10^{46}$ erg s$^{-1}$. We did not detect statistically significant flux changes between two SRG scans and the XMM-Newton observation, spanning over $\sim 7.5$ months, implying that the quasar remained at this extremely high luminosity level for at least a month in its rest frame. We put forward the hypothesis that the extreme X-ray properties of CFHQS J142952+544717 are associated with inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons (at z=6.18) in its relativistic jets.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

Detection of large-scale X-ray bubbles in the Milky Way halo

The halo of the Milky Way provides a laboratory to study the properties of the shocked hot gas that is predicted by models of galaxy formation. There is observational evidence of energy injection into the halo from past activity in the nucleus of the Milky Way; however, the origin of this energy (star formation or supermassive-black-hole activity) is uncertain, and the causal connection between nuclear structures and large-scale features has not been established unequivocally. Here we report soft-X-ray-emitting bubbles that extend approximately 14 kiloparsecs above and below the Galactic centre and include a structure in the southern sky analogous to the North Polar Spur. The sharp boundaries of these bubbles trace collisionless and non-radiative shocks, and corroborate the idea that the bubbles are not a remnant of a local supernova but part of a vast Galaxy-scale structure closely related to features seen in gamma-rays. Large energy injections from the Galactic centre are the most likely cause of both the γ-ray and X-ray bubbles. The latter have an estimated energy of around 10$^{56}$ erg, which is sufficient to perturb the structure, energy content and chemical enrichment of the circumgalactic medium of the Milky Way.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2020

Populations of super-soft X-ray sources in galaxies of different morphological types

We study populations of soft and super-soft X-ray sources in nearby galaxies of various morphological types with the special emphasis on characterizing populations of stable nuclear burning accreting WDs. Analysing the content of Chandra archive we assembled a sample of nearby galaxies suitable for studying populations of super-soft X-ray sources. Our sample includes 4 spiral galaxies, 2 lenticular galaxies and 3 ellipticals with stellar mass exceeding $10^{10}$ $M_\odot$ and X-ray sensitivity of the order of a ${\rm few}\times 10^{36}$ erg/s. We used combination of hardness ratio and median energy to pre-select X-ray sources with soft spectra, and temperature - X-ray luminosity diagram to identify super-soft X-ray sources - likely nuclear burning accreting white dwarfs. For spiral galaxies, there is a distinct and rare population of super-soft sources, largely detached from the rest of sources on the $kT_{bb}-L_X$ plane. The boundary between these sources and the much more numerous population of harder (but still soft) sources is consistent with the boundary of stable hydrogen burning on the white dwarf surface. Combined spectrum of soft sources located outside this boundary, shows clear emission lines of Mg and S, which equivalent width is similar to that in the combined spectrum of a large number of confirmed supernova remnants in M83. This confirms earlier suggestions that the vast majority of so called quasi-soft sources are supernova remnants. In early-type galaxies, populations of super-soft sources are about a factor of $\approx 8$ less abundant, in broad agreement with the population synthesis calculations. Specific frequencies of super-soft sources are: (2.08$\pm$0.46)$\times10^{-10}$ M$_{\odot}^{-1}$ in spiral galaxies and (2.47$\pm$1.34)$\times10^{-11}$ M$_{\odot}^{-1}$ in lenticular and elliptical galaxies, with the ratio of the latter to the former of $0.12\pm0.05$.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

LIN 358: A symbiotic binary accreting above the steady hydrogen fusion limit

Symbiotic binaries are long period interacting binaries consisting of a white dwarf (WD) accreting material from a cool evolved giant star via stellar winds. In this paper we study the symbiotic binary LIN 358 located in the SMC. We have observed LIN 358 with the integral field spectrograph WiFeS and obtained its line emission spectrum. With the help of the plasma simulation and spectral synthesis code Cloudy, we have constructed a 2D photo-ionisation model of LIN 358. From comparison with the observations, we have determined the colour temperature of the WD in LIN 358 to be 19 eV, its bolometric luminosity $L = (1.02 \pm 0.15) \times 10^{38}$ erg s$^{-1}$, and the mass-loss rate from the donor star to be $ 1.2 \times 10^{-6}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$. Assuming a solar H to He ratio in the wind material, a lower limit to the accreted mass fraction in LIN 358 is 0.31. The high mass-accretion efficiency of a wind Roche lobe overflow implies that the WD is accreting above the upper boundary of stable hydrogen fusion and thus growing in mass with the maximal rate of $\approx 4 \times 10^{-7}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$. This causes the WD photosphere to expand, which explains its low colour temperature. Our calculations show that the circumstellar material in LIN 358 is nearly completely ionized except for a narrow cone around the donor star, and that the WD emission is freely escaping the system. However, due to its low colour temperature, this emission can be easily attenuated by even moderate amounts of neutral ISM. We speculate that other symbiotic systems may be operating in a similar regime, thus explaining the paucity of observed systems.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2020

The eROSITA X-ray telescope on SRG

eROSITA (extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) is the primary instrument on the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) mission, which was successfully launched on July 13, 2019, from the Baikonour cosmodrome. After the commissioning of the instrument and a subsequent calibration and performance verification phase, eROSITA started a survey of the entire sky on December 13, 2019. By the end of 2023, eight complete scans of the celestial sphere will have been performed, each lasting six months. At the end of this program, the eROSITA all-sky survey in the soft X-ray band (0.2--2.3\,keV) will be about 25 times more sensitive than the ROSAT All-Sky Survey, while in the hard band (2.3--8\,keV) it will provide the first ever true imaging survey of the sky. The eROSITA design driving science is the detection of large samples of galaxy clusters up to redshifts $z>1$ in order to study the large-scale structure of the universe and test cosmological models including Dark Energy. In addition, eROSITA is expected to yield a sample of a few million AGNs, including obscured objects, revolutionizing our view of the evolution of supermassive black holes. The survey will also provide new insights into a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, including X-ray binaries, active stars, and diffuse emission within the Galaxy. Results from early observations, some of which are presented here, confirm that the performance of the instrument is able to fulfil its scientific promise. With this paper, we aim to give a concise description of the instrument, its performance as measured on ground, its operation in space, and also the first results from in-orbit measurements.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2020

SRG/eROSITA uncovers the most X-ray luminous quasar at z>6

We report the discovery of X-ray emission from CFHQS J142952+544717, the most distant known radio-loud quasar at z=6.18, on Dec. 10--11, 2019 with the eROSITA telescope on board the SRG satellite during its ongoing all-sky survey. The object was identified by cross-matching an intermediate SRG/eROSITA source catalog with the Pan-STARRS1 distant quasar sample at 5.6 < z < 6.7. The measured flux $\sim 8 \times 10^{-14}$ erg cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ in the 0.3--2 keV energy band corresponds to an X-ray luminosity of $2.6^{+1.7}_{-1.0}\times 10^{46}$ erg s$^{-1}$ in the 2--10 keV rest-frame energy band, which renders CFHQS J142952+544717 the most X-ray luminous quasar ever observed at z > 6. Combining our X-ray measurements with archival and new photometric measurements in other wavebands (radio to optical), we estimate the bolometric luminosity of this quasar at $\sim (2$--$3) \times 10^{47}$ erg s$^{-1}$. Assuming Eddington limited accretion and isotropic emission, we infer a lower limit on the mass of the supermassive black hole of $\sim 2\times 10^9 M_\odot$. The most salient feature of CFHQS J142952+544717 is its X-ray brightness relative to the optical/UV emission. We argue that it may be linked to its radio-loudness (although the object is not a blazar according to its radio properties), specifically to a contribution of inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons off relativistic electrons in the jets. If so, CFHQS J142952+544717 might be the tip of the iceberg of high-z quasars with enhanced X-ray emission, and SRG/eROSITA may find many more such objects during its 4 year all-sky survey.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2019

Comprehensive models of novae at metallicity $Z = 0.02$ and $Z = 10^{-4}$

Novae are the observational manifestations of thermonuclear runaways on the surface of accreting white dwarfs (WDs). Although novae are an ubiquitous phenomenon, their properties at low metallicity are not well understood. Using the publicly-available stellar evolution code Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA), we model the evolution of accreting carbon-oxygen WDs and consider models which accrete matter with metallicity Z=0.02 or $10^{-4}$. We consider both models without mixing and with matter enriched by CO-elements assuming that mixing occurs in the process of accretion (with mixing fraction 0.25). We present and contrast ignition mass, ejected mass, recurrence period and maximum luminosity of novae for different WD masses and accretion rates for these metallicities and mixing cases. We find that models with Z = 0.02 have ignition masses and recurrence periods smaller than models with low Z, while the ejected mass and maximum luminosity are larger. Retention efficiency during novae outbursts decreases with increasing metallicity. In our implementation, inclusion of mixing at the H/He interface reduces accreted mass, ejected mass and recurrence period as compared to the no-mixing case, while the maximum luminosity becomes larger. Retention efficiency is significantly reduced, becoming negative in most of our models. For ease of use, we provide a tabular summary of our results.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2018

Excluding super-soft X-ray sources as progenitors for four Type Ia supernovae in the Large Magellanic Cloud

Type Ia supernovae are vital to our understanding of the Universe due to their use in measuring cosmological distances and their significance in enriching the interstellar medium with heavy elements. They are understood to be the thermonuclear explosions of white dwarfs, but the exact mechanism(s) leading to these explosions remains unclear. The two competing models are the single degenerate scenario, wherein a white dwarf accretes material from a companion star and explodes when it reaches the Chandrasekhar limit, and the double degenerate scenario, wherein the explosion results from a merger of two white dwarfs. Here we report results which rule out hot, luminous progenitors consistent with the single degenerate scenario for four young Type Ia supernova remnants in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Using the integral field spectrograph WiFeS, we have searched these remnants for relic nebulae ionized by the progenitor, which would persist for up to $\sim 10^5$ years after the explosion. We detected no such nebula around any of the remnants. By comparing our upper limits with photoionization simulations performed using Cloudy, we have placed stringent upper limits on the luminosities of the progenitors of these supernova remnants. Our results add to the growing evidence disfavouring the single degenerate scenario.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2018

Balmer-Dominated Shocks Exclude Hot Progenitors for Many Type Ia Supernovae

The evolutionary mechanism underlying Type Ia supernova explosions remains unknown. Recent efforts to constrain progenitor models based on the influence that their high energy emission would have on the interstellar medium (ISM) of galaxies have proven successful. For individual remnants, Balmer-dominated shocks reveal the ionization state of hydrogen in the immediately surrounding gas. Here we report deep upper limits on the temperature and luminosity of the progenitors of four Type Ia remnants with associated Balmer filaments: SN 1006, 0509-67.5, 0519-69.0, and DEM L71. For SN 1006, existing observations of helium line emission in the diffuse emission ahead of the shock provide an additional constraint on the helium ionization state in the vicinity of the remnant. Using the photoionization code Cloudy, we show that these constraints exclude any hot, luminous progenitor for SN 1006, including stably hydrogen or helium nuclear-burning white dwarfs, as well as any Chandrasekhar-mass white dwarf accreting matter at $\gtrsim 9.5\times10^{-8}M_{\odot}/$yr via a disk. For 0509-67.5, the Balmer emission alone rules out any such white dwarf accreting $\gtrsim 1.4\times10^{-8}M_{\odot}/$yr. For 0519-69.0 and DEM L71, the inferred ambient ionization state of hydrogen is only weakly in tension with a recently hot, luminous progenitor, and cannot be distinguished from e.g., a relatively higher local Lyman continuum background, without additional line measurements. Future deep spectroscopic observations will resolve this ambiguity, and can either detect the influence of any luminous progenitor or rule out the same for all resolved SN Ia remnants.

astro-ph.HE↗