arXiv subjects

Wenlang He

Publications and source records attributed to Wenlang He.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Dust Absorption towards Supernova Remnant W44

Supernova remnants (SNRs) can strongly affect the chemical composition of the interstellar dust. In this paper we investigate to what degree the dust and ices are modified by observing four stars expected to be absorbed by a giant molecular cloud interacting with SNR W44, using medium-resolution spectroscopy in 2-5 $\mu$m. Absorption from H2O ice around 3.0 $\mu$m and aliphatic hydrocarbon dust around 3.4 $\mu$m were detected towards two stars, while probable CO ice at 4.67 $\mu$m towards one of them. Millimeter gas-phase CO J = 1-0 lines and three-dimensional dust extinction maps show that the dense molecular gas associated with W44 dominates (> 60%) the total interstellar extinction (A_K ~ 2.6) along these two sightlines. The H2O ice column densities are a factor of 1.5-3 lower than nearby MCs at similar extinctions, possibly because of the destruction of ice by shocks and cosmic rays (CRs) from W44, consistent with the low CO ice abundance relative to H2O (< 12%). One of the sightlines shows an unusually strong 3.4 $\mu$m aliphatic hydrocarbon absorption. If the carriers are located in diffuse dust along the sightline, unrelated to W44, its strength is ~ 4 times larger than those typically observed for diffuse dust clouds. Alternatively, the carriers may be enhanced in the W44 environment. We discuss several possible explanations, including shock formation of aliphatic hydrocarbons in diffuse clouds associated with W44, contribution from aliphatic hydrocarbons in shocked and CR-bombarded molecular clouds, and changes in the extinction law due to the SNR interaction.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

SGR 1935+2154's Quiet Local Environment: Clues for Its Progenitor

Magnetars are highly magnetized neutron stars (NSs) whose evolution and radiation are governed by the decay and/or reconfiguration of their magnetic fields. The origin of magnetars remains an open question, with proposed progenitor scenarios including core-collapse (CC) of very massive stars ($\ge 25~M_\odot$) or non-very massive stars ($8<M_*<25~M_\odot$), mergers of stellar systems, and accretion-induced collapse (AIC) of white dwarfs (WDs). Investigating the environments of magnetars can offer valuable clues to this issue. In this work, we study the local (a radius of $0.87^\circ$, $\sim 100$ pc at 6.6 kpc) stellar environment of SGR 1935+2154, which is spatially associated with the supernova remnant (SNR) G57.2+0.8, based on astrometry from Gaia DR3 and multi-band photometry from optical to infrared (IR). We discover that the upper limit of the surface density of massive stars around SGR 1935+2154 is only a quarter of that of the solar neighborhood, where the star formation rate is modest in the Galaxy. This quiet environment implies that the magnetar was likely formed by the CC of either a non-very massive star or a binary merger product rather than the CC of a very massive star. Although alternative channels cannot be excluded, their probabilities may be substantially lower. The studies of magnetars associated with SNRs consistently favor non-very massive progenitors, implying that such progenitors may produce a considerable fraction of magnetars. We also backtrack the trajectories of SGR 1935+2154 and its surrounding stars to search for its potential massive companions, yet no such companions are found.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2025

X-ray polarization in SN 1006 southwest shows spatial variations and differences with the radio band

We report the detection of a spatial variation of X-ray polarization in the southwestern shell of SN 1006 (SN 1006 SW) using IXPE. The shell has an average X-ray polarization degree (PD) of $21.6\%\pm 4.5\%$ and polarization angle (PA) of $-48^\circ \pm 5^\circ$ in the 2--4 keV energy band, similar to those in the northeastern shell. The PD varies along SN 1006 SW, with a peak PD$= 40\%\pm 8\%$ in the south and a significantly lower PD $\lesssim 27\%$ (99\% upper limit) in the west where the shell has been proposed to be interacting with an interstellar cloud. The correlation between the PD, which reflects the magnetic orderliness, and the preshock density provides observational evidence that magnetic turbulence and amplification are environment-dependent. The high PD detected in the southern region of the shell constrains the magnetic turbulence scale of $\lesssim 0.1$~pc. Moreover, by comparing the IXPE X-ray and MeerKAT radio polarization measurements for SN 1006 SW, we found that magnetic fields traced by X-ray polarization are nearly radially distributed, whereas those traced by radio polarization tend to follow a direction parallel to the Galactic plane. This suggests that the X-ray polarization probes freshly amplified magnetic fields from small-scale structures in the immediate postshock region, while the radio traces more extended regions influenced by the pre-existing ambient magnetic fields.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Alien Type Ia supernovae from the Milky Way merger history and one possible candidate: Kepler's supernova

The Milky Way is a dynamic and evolving system shaped by numerous merger events throughout its history. These mergers bring stars with kinematic and dynamic properties differing from the main stellar population. However, it remains uncertain whether any of the Galactic supernova remnants can be attributed to such a merger origin. In this work, we compare the progenitor of Kepler's supernova to its nearby stars, ``alien'' stars, and in-situ Milky Way stellar populations. We uncover the abnormal kinematics and dynamics of Kepler's supernova and propose that its progenitor may have an extragalactic origin. We call the Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) produced by stars accreted into the Milky Way through merger events ``alien SNe Ia'' since they are cosmic immigrants. We estimate the rate of alien SNe Ia exploded recently using two methods: through galactic chemical evolution, and through a method without considering exact star formation history, introduced for the first time in this paper. We consider the past accretion of a few major satellite galaxies -- Kraken, Gaia-Enceladus-Sausage, the Helmi streams, Sequoia, Sagittarius, Wukong/LMS-1, and Cetus -- assuming these were dry mergers. The first method yields $1.5\times 10^{-5} - 5.0\times10^{-5}\rm\,yr^{-1}$, while the second method yields a comparable ${3.1}^{+1.8}_{-{1.1}}\times10^{-5}\rm\,yr^{-1}$ as the rate estimates for recent alien SNe Ia. These estimates represent lower bounds because we assumed no postmerger star formation.

astro-ph.HE↗