Type Ic supernovae (SNe Ic) are a sub-class of core-collapse supernovae that exhibit no helium or hydrogen lines in their spectra. Their progenitors are thought to be bare carbon-oxygen cores formed during the evolution of massive stars that are stripped of their hydrogen and helium envelopes sometime before collapse. SNe Ic present a range of luminosities and spectral properties, from luminous GRB-SNe with broad-lined spectra to less luminous events with narrow-line spectra. Modelling SNe\,Ic reveals a wide range of both kinetic energies, ejecta masses, and $^{56}\text{Ni}$ masses. To explore this diversity and how it comes about, light curves and spectra are computed from the ejecta following the explosion of an initially 22 $\text{M}_{\odot}$ progenitor that was artificially stripped of its hydrogen and helium shells, producing a bare CO core of $\sim$ 5 $\text{M}_{\odot}$, resulting in an ejected mass of $\sim$ 4 $\text{M}_{\odot}$, which is an average value for SNe Ic. Four different explosion energies are used that cover a range of observed SNe. Finally, $^{56}\text{Ni}$ and other elements are artificially mixed in the ejecta using two approximations to determine how element distribution affects light curves and spectra. The combination of different explosion energy and degree of mixing produces spectra that roughly replicate the distribution of near-peak spectroscopic features of SNe Ic. High explosion energies combined with extensive mixing can produce red, broad-lined spectra, while minimal mixing and a lower explosion energy produce bluer, narrow-lined spectra.
We use the results of a supernova light-curve population synthesis to predict the range of possible supernova light curves arising from a population of single-star progenitors that lead to type IIP supernovae. We calculate multiple models varying the initial mass, explosion energy, nickel mass and nickel mixing and then compare these to type IIP supernovae with detailed light curve data and pre-explosion imaging progenitor constraints. Where a good fit is obtained to observations, we are able to achieve initial progenitor and nickel mass estimates from the supernova lightcurve that are compara…
Aims. We present and analyse late-time observations of the type-Ib supernova with possible pre-supernova progenitor detection, iPTF13bvn, taken at $\sim$300 days after the explosion, and discuss these in the context of constraints on the supernova's progenitor. Previous studies have proposed two possible natures for the progenitor of the supernova, i.e. a massive Wolf-Rayet star or a lower-mass star in close binary system. Methods. Our observations show that the supernova has entered the nebular phase, with the spectrum dominated by Mg~I]$λλ$4571, [O~I]$λλ$6300, 6364, and [Ca~II]$λλ$7291, 7324…
In this study we include axions in stellar evolution models adopting the current stringest constraints for their coupling to photons and electrons. We obtain that the minimum stellar mass of Core Collapse Supernova (CCSN) progenitors is shifted up by nearly 2 Mo. This result seems to be in tension with the observationaly derived minimum mass of CCSN progenitors.
The explosion outcome and diagnostics of core-collapse supernovae depend sensitively on the nature of the stellar progenitor, but most studies to date have focused exclusively on one-dimensional, spherically-symmetric massive star progenitors. We present some of the first core-collapse supernovae simulations of three-dimensional massive star supernovae progenitors, a 12.5- and a 15-M$_{\odot}$ model, evolved in three-dimensions from collapse to bounce through explosion with the radiation-hydrodynamic code F{\sc{ornax}}. We compare the results using those starting from three-dimensional progeni…
Although Type Ia supernovae have been heavily scrutinized due to their use in making cosmological distance estimates, we are still unable to definitively identify the progenitors for the entire population. While answers have been presented for certain specific systems, a complete solution remains elusive. We present observations of two supernova remnants (SNRs) in the Large Magellanic Cloud, SNR 0505-67.9 and SNR 0509-68.7, for which we have identified the center of the remnant and the 99.73% containment central region in which any companion star left over after the supernova must be located. …
We review all the models proposed for the progenitor systems of Type Ia supernovae and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each scenario when confronted with observations. We show that all scenarios encounter at least a few serious diffculties, if taken to represent a comprehensive model for the progenitors of all Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia). Consequently, we tentatively conclude that there is probably more than one channel leading SNe Ia. While the single-degenerate scenario (in which a single white dwarf accretes mass from a normal stellar companion) has been studied in some detail, the …
We infer the progenitor mass distribution for 22 historic core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) using a Bayesian hierarchical model. For this inference, we use the local star formation histories to estimate the age for each supernova (SN). These star formation histories often show multiple bursts of star formation; our model assumes that one burst is associated with the SN progenitor and the others are random bursts of star formation. The primary inference is the progenitor age distribution. Due to the limited number of historic SNe and highly uncertain star formation at young ages, we restrict our…
Type IIb supernovae are believed to originate from core-collapse progenitors having kept only a very thin hydrogen envelope. We aim to explore how some physical factors, such as rotation, metallicity, overshooting, and the initial orbital period in binaries, significantly affect the Roche lobe overflow and the formation of type IIb supernovae. It is found that binaries are the main channel that capable of producing type typeIIb supernovae progenitors in the mass range for initial masses below 20 $M_{\odot}$. The formation of type IIb supernova progenitors is extremely sensitive to the initial …
We report and discuss post-explosion observations of supernova iPTF13bvn. We find that the brightness of the SN at +740 days is below the level of the pre-explosion source and thus confirm that the progenitor star has gone. We estimate that the late-time brightness is still dominated by the supernova, which constrains the magnitude and thus mass of a possible companion star to below approximately 10Msun. In turn this implies that the progenitor's initial mass is constrained to a narrow range of between 10 to 12Msun. The progenitor of iPTF13bvn would have been a helium giant rather than a Wolf-…
We present Large Binocular Telescope difference imaging data for the final years of four Type II-P/L supernovae progenitors. For all four, we find no significant evidence for stochastic or steady variability in the U, B, V, or R-bands. Our limits constrain variability to no more than roughly 5-10% of the expected R-band luminosities of the progenitors. These limits are comparable to the observed variability of red supergiants in the Magellanic Clouds. Based on these four events, the probability of a Type II-P/L progenitor having an extended outburst after Oxygen ignition is <37% at 90% confide…
This paper presents a database of the spectroscopic- and photometric- spectral energy distributions (spec-SEDs and phot-SEDs) of the progenitors of core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe). Both binary- and single-star progenitors are included in the database. The database covers the initial metallicity ($Z$) range of 0.0001--0.03, mass range of 8--25 \dsm{}, binary mass ratio range of 0--1, and orbital period range of 0.1--10000\,days. The low-resolution spec-SEDs and phot-SEDs of single- and binary-star CCSN progenitors are included in the database. These data can be used for studying the basic para…
Connecting observations of core-collapse supernova explosions to the properties of their massive star progenitors is a long-sought, and challenging, goal of supernova science. Recently, Barker et al. (2022) presented bolometric light curves for a landscape of progenitors from spherically symmetric neutrino-driven core-collapse supernova (CCSN) simulations using an effective model. They find a tight relationship between the plateau luminosity of the Type II-P CCSN light curve and the terminal iron core mass of the progenitor. Remarkably, this allows us to constrain progenitor properties with ph…
Stars in the mass range from 8 to 10 solar masses are expected to produce one of two types of supernovae (SNe), either electron-capture supernovae (ECSNe) or core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe), depending on their previous evolution. Either of the associated progenitors retain extended and massive hydrogen-rich envelopes, the observables of these SNe are, therefore, expected to be similar. In this study we explore the differences in these two types of SNe. Specifically, we investigate three different progenitor models: a solar-metallicity ECSN progenitor with an initial mass of 8.8 solar masses, …
We present results of a systematic study of the mass-loss properties of Type IIn supernova progenitors within decades before their explosion. We apply an analytic light curve model to 11 Type IIn supernova bolometric light curves to derive the circumstellar medium properties. We reconstruct the mass-loss histories based on the estimated circumstellar medium properties. The estimated mass-loss rates are mostly higher than 1e-3 Msun/yr and they are consistent with those obtained by other methods. The mass-loss rates are often found to be constantly high within decades before their explosion. Thi…
The dominant radioactive energy source powering Type Ia supernova light curves is expected to switch from the decay of $^{56}$Co to $^{57}$Co at very late epochs. We use archival HST images of SN1992A obtained more than 900 days after explosion to constrain its cobalt isotopic abundance ratio and compare it to the well-studied event SN2011fe. We confirm the $^{57}$Co / $^{56}$Co ratio for SN2011fe of $0.026\pm 0.004$ found by arXiv:1608.01155, consistent with a "double degenerate" progenitor scenario. For SN1992A, we find a ratio of $0.034\pm 0.010$, but the large uncertainty does not allow us…
Core-collapse supernovae showing little or no hydrogen (denoted by Type IIb and Ib, respectively) are the explosions of massive stars that have lost some or most of their outer envelopes. How they lose their mass is unclear, but it likely involves binary interaction. So far, seven progenitors of such supernovae have been identified in pre-explosion imaging (five for Type IIb events and two for Type Ib events). Here, we evolve detailed binary stellar evolution models in order to better understand the nature of these progenitors. We find that the amount of hydrogen left in the envelope at the ti…
Red supergiants have been confirmed as the progenitor stars of the majority of hydrogen-rich type II supernovae. However, while such stars are observed with masses >25M$_\odot$, detections of >18M$_\odot$ progenitors remain elusive. Red supergiants are also expected to form at all metallicities, but discoveries of explosions from low-metallicity progenitors are scarce. Here, we report observations of the type II supernova, SN 2015bs, for which we infer a progenitor metallicity of $\leq$0.1Z$_\odot$ from comparison to photospheric-phase spectral models, and a Zero Age Main-Sequence mass of 17-2…
Type IIP supernova progenitors are often surrounded by dense circumstellar media that may result from mass-loss enhancement of the progenitors shortly before their explosions. Previous light-curve studies suggest that the mass-loss rates are enhanced up to ~ 0.1 Msun/yr, assuming a constant wind velocity. However, density of circumstellar media at the immediate stellar vicinity can be much higher than previously inferred for a given mass-loss rate if wind acceleration is taken into account. We show that the wind acceleration has a huge impact when we estimate mass-loss rates from early light c…
The progenitors of many Type II supernovae have been observationally identified but the search for Type Ibc supernova (SN Ibc) progenitors has thus far been unsuccessful, despite the expectation that they are luminous Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars. We investigate how the evolution of massive helium stars affects their visual appearances, and discuss the implications for the detectability of SN Ibc progenitors. Massive WR stars that rapidly lose their helium envelopes through stellar-wind mass-loss end their lives when their effective temperatures -- related to their hydrostatic surfaces -- exceed abou…
An erroneous interpretation of the hydrodynamical results led to an incorrect determination of the fallback masses in Ugliano et al. (2012), which also (on a smaller level) affects the neutron star masses provided in that paper. This problem was already addressed and corrected in the follow-up works by Ertl et al. (2015) and Sukhbold et al. (2015). Therefore, the reader is advised to use the new data of the latter two publications. In the remaining text of this Erratum we present the differences of the old and new fallback results in detail and explain the origin of the mistake in the original…
Thermonuclear (type Ia) supernovae are bright stellar explosions with the unique property that the light curves can be standardized, allowing them to be used as distance indicators for cosmological studies. Many fundamental questions bout these events remain, however. We provide a critique of our present understanding of these and present results of simulations assuming the single-degenerate progenitor model consisting of a white dwarf that has gained mass from a stellar companion. We present results from full three-dimensional simulations of convection with weak reactions comprising the A=23 …
The availability of updated model atmospheres for red supergiants and improvements in single and binary stellar evolution models, as well as previously unpublished data prompted us to revisit the progenitor of low-luminosity type II-Plateau supernova, SN 2008bk. Using mid-IR data in combination with dust models, we find that high temperature (4250-4500 K), high extinction (E(B-V)>0.7) solutions are incompatible with the data. We therefore favour a cool (~3500-3700 K) progenitor with a luminosity of log(L/Lsun)~4.53. Comparing with evolutionary tracks, we infer progenitor masses in the 8-10 Msu…
The progenitors of Type IIP supernovae (SNe) are known to be red supergiants, but their properties are not well determined. We employ hydrodynamical modelling to investigate the explosion characteristics of eight Type IIP supernovae, and the properties of their progenitor stars. We create evolutionary models using the {\sc MESA} stellar evolution code, explode these models, and simulate the optical lightcurves using the {\sc STELLA} code. We fit the optical lightcurves, Fe II 5169Å velocity, and photospheric velocity, to the observational data. Recent research has suggested that the progenitor…
We explore a new scenario for producing stripped-envelope supernova progenitors. In our scenario, the stripped-envelope supernova is the second supernova of the binary, in which the envelope of the secondary was removed during its red supergiant phase by the impact of the first supernova. Through 2D hydrodynamical simulations, we find that $\sim$50-90$\%$ of the envelope can be unbound as long as the pre-supernova orbital separation is $\lesssim5$ times the stellar radius. Recombination energy plays a significant role in the unbinding, especially for relatively high mass systems ($\gtrsim18M_\…
Type Ibn supernovae (SNe) are a rare class of stellar explosions whose progenitor systems are not yet well determined. We present and analyze observations of the Type Ibn SN 2019kbj, and model its light curve in order to constrain its progenitor and explosion parameters. SN 2019kbj shows roughly constant temperature during the first month after peak, indicating a power source (likely circumstellar material interaction) that keeps the continuum emission hot at ~15,000K. Indeed, we find that the radioactive decay of Ni56 is disfavored as the sole power source of the bolometric light curve. A rad…
The creation of "hybrid" white dwarfs, made of a C-O core within a O-Ne shell has been proposed, and studies indicate that ignition in the C-rich central region makes these viable progenitors for thermonuclear (type Ia) supernovae. Recent work found that the C-O core is mixed with the surrounding O-Ne as the white dwarf cools prior to accretion, which results in lower central C fractions in the massive progenitor than previously assumed. To further investigate the efficacy of hybrid white dwarfs as progenitors of thermonuclear supernovae, we performed simulations of thermonuclear supernovae fr…
Despite the significance of Type Ia supernovae (SNeIa) in many fields in astrophysics, SNeIa lack a theoretical explanation. The standard scenarios involve thermonuclear explosions of carbon/oxygen white dwarfs approaching the Chandrasekhar mass; either by accretion from a companion or by a merger of two white dwarfs. We investigate the contribution from both channels to the SNIa rate with the binary population synthesis (BPS) code SeBa in order to constrain binary processes such as the mass retention efficiency of WD accretion and common envelope evolution. We determine the theoretical rates …
Multi-dimensional fluid flow plays a paramount role in the explosions of massive stars as core-collapse supernovae. In recent years, three-dimensional (3D) simulations of these phenomena have matured significantly. Considerable progress has been made towards identifying the ingredients for shock revival by the neutrino-driven mechanism, and successful explosions have already been obtained in a number of self-consistent 3D models. These advances also bring new challenges, however. Prompted by a need for increased physical realism and meaningful model validation, supernova theory is now moving t…
In certain mass ranges, massive stars can undergo a violent pulsation triggered by the electron/positron pair instability that ejects matter, but does not totally disrupt the star. After one or more of these pulsations, such stars are expected to undergo core-collapse to trigger a supernova explosion. The mass range susceptible to this pulsational phenomena may be as low as 50-70 Msun if the progenitor is of very low metallicity and rotating sufficiently rapidly to undergo nearly homogeneous evolution. The mass, dynamics, and composition of the matter ejected in the pulsation are important asp…
We present the results of a detailed, systematic stellar evolution study of binary mergers for blue supergiant (BSG) progenitors of Type II supernovae. In particular, these are the first evolutionary models that can simultaneously reproduce nearly all observational aspects of the progenitor of SN 1987A, $\text{Sk}-69\,^{\circ}202$, such as its position in the HR diagram, the enrichment of helium and nitrogen in the triple-ring nebula, and its lifetime before its explosion. The merger model, based on the one proposed by Podsiadlowski 1992 et al. and Podsiadlowski 2007 et al., consists of a main…
Type Ib/c supernovae (SNe Ib/c) mark the deaths of hydrogen-deficient massive stars. The evolutionary scenarios for SNe Ib/c progenitors involve many important physical processes including mass loss by winds and its metallicity dependence, stellar rotation, and binary interactions. This makes SNe Ib/c an excellent test bed for stellar evolution theory. We review the main results of evolutionary models for SN Ib/c progenitors available in the literature and their confrontation with recent observations. We argue that the nature of SN Ib/c progenitors can be significantly different for single and…
Type II supernova progenitors are expected to emit copious amounts of mass in a dense stellar wind prior to the explosion. When the progenitor is a member of a binary, the orbital motion modulates the density of this wind. When the progenitor explodes, the high-velocity ejecta collides with the modulated wind, which in turn produces a modulated radio signal. In this work we derive general analytic relations between the parameters of the radio signal modulations and binary parameter in the limit of large member mass ratio. We use these relations to infer the semi major axis of SN1979c and a low…
We perform three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations of aspherical core-collapse supernovae focusing on the matter mixing in SN 1987A. The impacts of four progenitor (pre-supernova) models and parameterized aspherical explosions are investigated. The four pre-supernova models include a blue supergiant (BSG) model based on a slow merger scenario developed recently for the progenitor of SN 1987A (Urushibata et al. 2018). The others are a BSG model based on a single star evolution and two red supergiant (RSG) models. Among the investigated explosion (simulation) models, a model with the binary m…
Natures of progenitors of type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) have not yet been clarified. There has been long and intensive discussion on whether the so-called single degenerate (SD) scenario or the double degenerate (DD) scenario, or anything else, could explain a major population of SNe Ia, but the conclusion has not yet been reached. With rapidly increasing observational data and new theoretical ideas, the field of studying the SN Ia progenitors has been quickly developing, and various new insights have been obtained in recent years. This article aims at providing a summary of the current situatio…
We investigate the evolution of Type Ib/c supernova (SN Ib/c) progenitors in close binary systems, using new evolutionary models that include the effects of rotation, with initial masses of 12 - 25 Msun for the primary components, and of single helium stars with initial masses of 2.8 - 20 Msun. We find that, despite the impact of tidal interaction on the rotation of primary stars, the amount of angular momentum retained in the core at the presupernova stage in different binary model sequences converge to a value similar to those found in previous single star models. This amount is large enough…
We examine pre-supernova Chandra images to find X-ray luminosities of type Ia supernova progenitors. At present, we have one possible direct detection and upper limits for the X-ray luminosities of a number of other supernova progenitors. The method has also yielded a possible detection of a X-ray binary Wolf-Rayet system as the progenitor of a type Ib supernova.
Several recently discovered peculiar type Ia supernovae seem to demand an altogether new formation theory that might help explain the puzzling dissimilarities between them and the standard type Ia supernovae. The most striking aspect of the observational analysis is the necessity of invoking super-Chandrasekhar white dwarfs having masses ~ 2.1-2.8M_sun, M_sun being the mass of Sun, as their most probable progenitors. Strongly magnetized white dwarfs having super-Chandrasekhar masses were already established to be potential candidates for the progenitors of peculiar type Ia supernovae. Owing to…
Type Ia supernovae have proven vital to our understanding of cosmology, both as standard candles and for their role in galactic chemical evolution; however, their origin remains uncertain. The canonical accretion model implies a hot and luminous progenitor which would ionize the surrounding gas out to a radius of $\sim$10--100 parsecs for $\sim$100,000 years after the explosion. Here we report stringent upper limits on the temperature and luminosity of the progenitor of Tycho's supernova (SN 1572), determined using the remnant itself as a probe of its environment. Hot, luminous progenitors tha…
We searched through roughly 12 years of archival survey data acquired by the Katzman Automatic Imaging Telescope (KAIT) as part of the Lick Observatory Supernova Search (LOSS) in order to detect or place limits on possible progenitor outbursts of Type IIn supernovae (SNe~IIn). The KAIT database contains multiple pre-SN images for 5 SNe~IIn (plus one ambiguous case of a SN IIn/imposter) within 50 Mpc. No progenitor outbursts are found using the false discovery rate (FDR) statistical method in any of our targets. Instead, we derive limiting magnitudes (LMs) at the locations of the SNe. These lim…
The progenitor and explosion properties of type II supernovae (SNe II) are fundamental to understand the evolution of massive stars. Special interest has been given to the range of initial masses of their progenitors, but despite the efforts made, it is still uncertain. Direct imaging of progenitors in pre-explosion images point out an upper initial mass cutoff of $\sim$18$M_{\odot}$. However, this is in tension with previous studies in which progenitor masses inferred by light curve modelling tend to favour high-mass solutions. Moreover, it has been argued that light curve modelling alone can…
Supernova (SN) iPTF13bvn in NGC 5806 was the first Type Ib SN to have been tentatively associated with a progenitor candidate in pre-explosion images. We performed deep ultraviolet (UV) and optical Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of the SN site 740 days after explosion. We detect an object in the optical bands that is fainter than the pre-explosion object. This dimming is likely not produced by dust absorption in the ejecta; thus, our finding confirms the connection of the progenitor candidate with the SN. The object in our data is likely dominated by the fading SN, which implies tha…
Using Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA)+STELLA, we show that very different physical models can adequately reproduce a specific observed Type II-Plateau Supernova (SN). We consider SN2004A, SN2004et, SN2009ib, SN2017eaw, and SN2017gmr, Nickel-rich ($M_\mathrm{Ni}>0.03M_\odot$) events with bolometric lightcurves and a well-sampled decline from the plateau. These events also have constraints on the progenitor radius, via a progenitor image, or, in the case of SN2017gmr, a radius from fitting shock-cooling models. In general, many explosions spanning the parameter space of pr…
We study properties of early radio emission from stripped-envelope supernovae (those of type IIb/Ib/Ic). We suggest there is a sub-class of stripped-envelope supernovae in their radio properties, including optically well-studied type Ic supernovae (SNe Ic) 2002ap and 2007gr, showing a rapid rise to a radio peak within ~ 10 days reaching to a low luminosity (at least an order of magnitude fainter than a majority of SNe IIb/Ib/Ic). They show a decline after the peak shallower than others while the spectral index is similar. We show that all these properties are naturally explained if the circums…
In this work, we study the synthetic explosions of a massive star. We take a 100 M$_{\odot}$ zero--age main--sequence (ZAMS) star and evolve it until the onset of core-collapse using {\tt MESA}. Then, the resulting star model is exploded using the publicly available stellar explosion code, {\tt STELLA}. The outputs of {\tt STELLA} calculations provide us the bolometric light curve and photospheric velocity evolution along with other physical properties of the underlying supernova. In this paper, the effects of having large Hydrogen-envelope on the supernova light curve have been explored. We a…
We present analysis of Chandra archival, pre-explosion data of the positions of three nearby (< 25 Mpc) type Ia supernovae, SN2011iv, SN2012cu & SN2012fr. No sources corresponding to the progenitors were found in any of the observations. Combining all sources with well defined backgrounds does not reveal any evidence for X-ray emission from the progenitors either. We calculated upper limits on the bolometric luminosities of the progenitors, under the assumption that they were black bodies with effective temperatures between 30 and 150 eV, corresponding to 'canonical' supersoft X-ray sources. T…
Over the last 15 years, the supernova community has endeavoured to identify progenitor stars of core-collapse supernovae in high resolution archival images of their galaxies.This review compiles results (from 1999 - 2013) in a distance limited sample and discusses the implications. The vast majority of the detections of progenitor stars are of type II-P, II-L or IIb with one type Ib progenitor system detected and many more upper limits for progenitors of Ibc supernovae (14). The data for these 45 supernovae progenitors illustrate a remarkable deficit of high luminosity stars above an apparent …
I summarize what we have learned about the nature of stars that ultimately explode as core-collapse supernovae from the examination of images taken prior to the explosion. By registering pre-supernova and post-supernova images, usually taken at high resolution using either space-based optical detectors, or ground-based infrared detectors equipped with laser guide star adaptive optics systems, nearly three dozen core-collapse supernovae have now had the properties of their progenitor stars either directly measured or (more commonly) constrained by establishing upper limits on their luminosities…
We present pre-explosion photometry of the likely progenitor star of the Type II supernova (SN II) 2017eaw in NGC 6946. We use a Hubble Space Telescope (HST) image of SN 2017eaw to perform relative astrometry with HST and Spitzer Space Telescope (Spitzer) imaging, finding a single point source consistent with its position. We detect the progenitor star in $>$40 epochs of HST and Spitzer imaging covering 12.9 years to 43 days before discovery. While the progenitor luminosity was roughly constant for most of this period, there was a $\sim$20% increase in its $4.5~μ$m luminosity over the final 3 …
In a canonical model, the progenitors of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are accreting, nuclear-burning white dwarfs (NBWDs), which explode when the white dwarf reaches the Chandrasekhar mass, M_C. Such massive NBWDs are hot (kT ~100 eV), luminous (L ~ 10^{38} erg/s), and are potentially observable as luminous supersoft X-ray sources (SSSs). During the past several years, surveys for soft X-ray sources in external galaxies have been conducted. This paper shows that the results falsify the hypothesis that a large fraction of progenitors are NBWDs which are presently observable as SSSs. The data als…
We identify a pre-explosion counterpart to the nearby Type IIP supernova ASASSN-16fq (SN 2016cok) in archival Hubble Space Telescope (HST) data. The source appears to be a blend of several stars that prevents obtaining accurate photometry. However, with reasonable assumptions about the stellar temperature and extinction, the progenitor almost certainly had an initial mass M<17Msun, and was most likely in the mass range 8-12Msun. Observations once ASASSN-16fq has faded will have no difficulty accurately determining the properties of the progenitor. In 8 years of Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) …
The remnants of Type Ia supernovae can provide important clues about their progenitor-histories. We discuss two well-observed supernova remnants (SNRs) that are believed to result from a Type Ia SN and use various tools to shed light on the possible progenitor history. We find that Kepler's SNR is consistent with a symbiotic binary progenitor consisted of a white dwarf and an AGB star. Our hydrosimulations can reproduce the observed kinematic and morphological properties. For Tycho's remnant we use the characteristics of the X-ray spectrum and the kinematics to show that the ejecta has likely …
The recent discovery that the Fe-K line luminosities and energy centroids observed in nearby SNRs are a strong discriminant of both progenitor type and circumstellar environment has implications for our understanding of supernova progenitor evolution. Using models for the chemical composition of core-collapse supernova ejecta, we model the dynamics and thermal X-ray emission from shocked ejecta and circumstellar material, modeled as an $r^{-2}$ wind, to ages of 3000 years. We compare the X-ray spectra expected from these models to observations made with the Suzaku satellite. We also model the …
Massive stars unable to sustain gravitational collapse, at the end of nuclear burning stage, turns out into core-collapse supernovae, leaving behind compact objects like neutron stars or black holes. The progenitor properties like mass and metallicity primarily governs the explosion parameters and type of compact remnant. In this contribution we summarize observational study of three Core Collapse type IIP SNe 2012aw, 2013ab and 2013ej, which are rigorously observed from ARIES and other Indian observatories and discuss their progenitor and explosion properties.
We present gravitational wave emission predictions based on three core collapse supernova simulations corresponding to three different progenitor masses. The masses span a large range, between 9.6 and 25 Solar masses, are all initially non-rotating, and are of two metallicities: zero and Solar. We compute both the temporal evolution of the gravitational wave strains for both the plus and the cross polarizations, as well as their spectral decomposition and characteristic strains.
Little is observationally known about the progenitors of Type Ibc supernovae (SNe) or the typical activity of SNe progenitors in their final years. Here, we analyze deep Large Binocular Telescope imaging data spanning the 4 years before and after the Type Ic SN 2012fh using difference imaging. We place 1$σ$ upper limits on the detection of the progenitor star at $M_R>-4.0$, $M_V>-3.8$, $M_B>-3.1$, and $M_U>-3.8$ mag. These limits are the tightest placed on a Type Ic SNe and they largely rule out single star evolutionary models in favor of a binary channel as the origin of this SN. We also cons…
