We perform a sub-threshold follow-up search for continuous nearly-monochromatic gravitational waves from the central compact objects associated with the supernova remnants Vela Jr., Cassiopeia A, and SNR G347.3$-$0.5. Across the three targets, we investigate the most promising ~ 10,000 combinations of gravitational wave frequency and frequency derivative values, based on the results from an Einstein@Home search of the LIGO O1 observing run data, dedicated to these objects. The selection threshold is set so that a signal could be confirmed using the newly released O2 run LIGO data. In order to achieve best sensitivity we perform two separate follow-up searches, on two distinct stretches of the O2 data. Only one candidate survives the first O2 follow-up investigation, associated with the central compact object in SNR G347.3-0.5, but it is not conclusively confirmed. In order to assess a possible astrophysical origin we use archival X-ray observations and search for amplitude modulations of a pulsed signal at the putative rotation frequency of the neutron star and its harmonics. This is the first extensive electromagnetic follow-up of a continuous gravitational wave candidate performed to date. No significant associated signal is identified. New X-ray observations contemporaneous with the LIGO O3 run will enable a more sensitive search for an electromagnetic counterpart. A focused gravitational wave search in O3 data based on the parameters provided here should be easily able to shed light on the nature of this outlier. Noise investigations on the LIGO instruments could also reveal the presence of a coherent contamination.
We report results of the most sensitive search to date for periodic gravitational waves from Cassiopeia A, Vela Jr. and G347.3 with frequency between 20 and 1500 Hz. The search was made possible by the computing power provided by the volunteers of the Einstein@Home project and improves on previous results by a factor of 2 across the entire frequency range for all targets. We find no significant signal candidate and set the most stringent upper limits to date on the amplitude of gravitational wave signals from the target population, corresponding to sensitivity depths between 54 $[1/ {\sqrt{\te…
We report on observations of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A in the energy range from 100 MeV to 100 GeV using 44 months of observations from the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. We perform a detailed spectral analysis of this source and report on a low-energy break in the spectrum at $1.72^{+1.35}_{-0.89}$ GeV. By comparing the results with models for the gamma-ray emission, we find that hadronic emission is preferred for the GeV energy range.
We report on the first detection of GeV high-energy gamma-ray emission from a young supernova remnant with the Large Area Telescope aboard the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. These observations reveal a source with no discernible spatial extension detected at a significance level of 12.2$σ$ above 500 MeV at a location that is consistent with the position of the remnant of the supernova explosion that occurred around 1680 in the Cassiopeia constellation - Cassiopeia A. The gamma-ray flux and spectral shape of the source are consistent with a scenario in which the gamma-ray emission originates …
Mixing above the proto-neutron star is believed to play an important role in the supernova engine, and this mixing results in a supernova explosion with asymmetries. Elements produced in the innermost ejecta, e.g., ${}^{56}$Ni and ${}^{44}$Ti, provide a clean probe of this engine. The production of ${}^{44}$Ti is particularly sensitive to the exact production pathway and, by understanding the available pathways, we can use ${}^{44}$Ti to probe the supernova engine. Using thermodynamic trajectories from a three-dimensional supernova explosion model, we review the production of these elements an…
We present new Chandra ACIS-S3 observations of Cassiopeia A which, when combined with earlier ACIS-S3 observations, show evidence for a steady ~ 1.5-2%/yr decline in the 4.2-6.0 keV X-ray emission between the years 2000 and 2010. The computed flux from exposure corrected images over the entire remnant showed a 17% decline over the entire remnant and a slightly larger (21%) decline from regions along the remnant's western limb. Spectral fits of the 4.2-6.0 keV emission across the entire remnant, forward shock filaments, and interior filaments indicate the remnant's nonthermal spectral powerlaw …
We present a survey of the X-ray emitting ejecta in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant based on an extensive analysis of over 6000 spectral regions extracted on 2.5-10" angular scales using the Chandra 1 Ms observation. We interpret these results in the context of hydrodynamical models for the evolution of the remnant. The distributions of fitted temperature and ionization age, and the implied mass coordinates, are highly peaked and suggest that the ejecta were subjected to multiple secondary shocks following reverse shock interaction with ejecta inhomogeneities. Based on the fitted emission m…
Cassiopeia A, a well-observed young core-collapse supernova remnant (SNR), is considered as one of the best candidates for studying very high-energy particle acceleration up to PeV via the diffusive shock mechanism. Recently, MAGIC observations revealed a $γ$-ray spectral cutoff at $\sim3.5$ TeV, suggesting that if the TeV $γ$-rays have a hadronic origin, SNR Cas A can only accelerate particles to tens of TeV. Here, we propose a two-zone emission model for regions associated with the forward (zone 1) and inward/reverse shocks (zone 2). Given the low density in zone 1, it dominates the high-fre…
Supernova remnants (SNRs) offer the means to study supernovae (SNe) long after the original explosion and can provide a unique insight into the mechanism that governs these energetic events. In this work, we examine the morphologies of X-ray emission from different elements found in the youngest known core-collapse (CC) SNR in the Milky Way, Cassiopeia A. The heaviest elements exhibit the highest levels of asymmetry, which we relate to the burning process that created the elements and their proximity to the center of explosion. Our findings support recent model predictions that the material cl…
Many supernova remnants (SNRs) are characterized by a knotty ejecta structure. The Vela SNR is an excellent example of remnant in which detached clumps of ejecta are visible as X-ray emitting bullets that have been observed and studied in great detail. We aim at modelling the evolution of ejecta shrapnel in the Vela SNR, investigating the role of their initial parameters (position and density) and addressing the effects of thermal conduction and radiative losses. We performed a set of 2-D hydrodynamic simulations describing the evolution of a density inhomogeneity in the ejecta profile. We exp…
We found simultaneous decrease of Fe-K line and 4.2-6 keV continuum of Cassiopeia A with the monitoring data taken by Chandra in 2000-2013. The flux change rates in the whole remnant are $-$0.65$\pm$0.02 \% yr$^{-1}$ in the 4.2--6.0 keV continuum and $-$0.6$\pm$0.1 \% yr$^{-1}$ in the Fe-K. In the eastern region where the thermal emission is considered to dominate, the variations show the largest values: $-$1.03$\pm$0.05 \% yr$^{-1}$ (4.2-6 keV band) and $-$0.6$\pm$0.1 \% yr$^{-1}$ (Fe-K line). In this region, the time evolution of the emission measure and the temperature have a decreasing tre…
Statistics of the magnetic field disturbances in the supernova remnants (SNRs) can be accessed using the second-order correlation function of the synchrotron intensities. Here we measure the magnetic energy spectra in supernova remnant Cassiopeia-A by two-point correlation of the synchrotron intensities, using a recently developed unbiased method. The measured magnetic energy spectra in the vicinity of supernova remnant shocks are found to be 2/3 power law over the decade of range scales, showing the developed trans-Alfvenic magnetohydrodynamic turbulence. Our results are globally consistent w…
We conduct a multi-wavelength morphological study of the Galactic supernova remnant RXJ0852.0-4622 (also known as Vela Jr., Vela Z and G266.2-1.2). RX J0852.0-4622 is coincident with the edge of the larger Vela supernova remnant causing confusion in the attribution of some filamentary structures to either RX J0852.0-4622 or its larger sibling. We find that the RX J0852.0-4622 radio continuum emission can be characterised by a 2-dimensional shell with a radius of 0.90+/-0.01deg (or 11.8+/-0.6pc at an assumed distance of 750pc) centred at (l,b)=(133.08+/-0.01 deg,-46.34+/-0.01deg) (or RA=8h52m19…
We will present the multi-wavelength modeling of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A's shell based on radio, X-rays, and GeV-TeV gamma rays. Our aim is to estimate the location of TeV gamma rays with the help of spectral analysis of X-rays from different regions of the shell, because Chandra X-ray observations have a far better angular resolution than the gamma-ray measurements. Our analysis shows X-ray flux levels from various regions of the remnant to be different. We find that leptonic model is unable to explain the GeV and TeV data, simultaneously. So, we invoke a hadronic model as an addit…
Vela Jr. (RX J0852.0$-$4622) is one of just a few known supernova remnants (SNRs) with a resolved shell across the whole electromagnetic spectrum from radio to very-high-energy ($>100$ GeV; VHE) gamma-rays. Its proximity and large size allow for detailed spatially resolved observations of the source making Vela Jr. one of the primary sources used for the study of particle acceleration and emission mechanisms in SNRs. High-resolution X-ray observations reveal a steepening of the spectrum toward the interior of the remnant. In this study we aim for a self-consistent radiation model of Vela Jr. w…
We report, for the first time, the detection of the Mn-K$α$ line in the Type IIb supernova (SN IIb) remnant, Cassiopeia A. Manganese ($^{55}$Mn after decay of $^{55}$Co), a neutron-rich element, together with chromium ($^{52}$Cr after decay of $^{52}$Fe), is mainly synthesized at the explosive incomplete Si burning regime. Therefore, the Mn/Cr mass ratio with its neutron excess reflects the neutronization at the relevant burning layer during the explosion. Chandra's archival X-ray data of Cassiopeia A indicate a low Mn/Cr mass ratio with values in the range 0.10--0.66, which, when compared to …
Cassiopeia A the youngest supernova remnant known in the Milky Way is one of the brightest radio sources in the sky and a unique laboratory for supernova physics. Although its compact remnant was discovered in 1999 by the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, nowadays it is widely accepted that a neutron star lies in the center of this supernova remnant. In addition, new observations suggest that such neutron star with a low magnetic field and evidence of a carbon atmosphere could have suffered a hypercritical accretion phase seconds after the explosion. Considering this hypercritical accretion episode, …
The Vela and Puppis A supernova remnants (SNRs) comprise a large emission region of $\sim 8^{\circ}$ diameter in the soft X-ray sky. The HaloSat CubeSat mission provides the first soft X-ray ($0.4-7$ keV) observation of the entire Vela SNR and Puppis A SNR region with a single pointing and moderate spectral resolution. HaloSat observations of the Vela SNR are best fit with a two-temperature thermal plasma model consisting of a cooler component with $kT_{1} = 0.19^{+0.01}_{-0.01}$ keV in collisional ionization equilibrium and a hotter component with $kT_{2} = 1.06^{+0.45}_{-0.27}$ keV in non-eq…
The death of massive stars is believed to involve aspheric explosions initiated by the collapse of an iron core. The specifics of how these catastrophic explosions proceed remain uncertain due, in part, to limited observational constraints on various processes that can introduce asymmetries deep inside the star. Here we present near-infrared observations of the young Milky Way supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, descendant of a type IIb core-collapse explosion, and a three-dimensional map of its interior, unshocked ejecta. The remnant's interior has a bubble-like morphology that smoothly connects …
NASA and other astrophysical data of the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant have been rendered into a three-dimensional virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) program, the first of its kind. This data-driven experience of a supernova remnant allows viewers to walk inside the leftovers from the explosion of a massive star, select the parts of the supernova remnant to engage with, and access descriptive texts on what the materials are. The basis of this program is a unique 3D model of the 340-year old remains of a stellar explosion, made by combining data from the NASA Chandra X-ray Observa…
We present deep ($>$2.4 Ms) observations of the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant with {\it NuSTAR}, which operates in the 3--79 keV bandpass and is the first instrument capable of spatially resolving the remnant above 15 keV. We find that the emission is not entirely dominated by the forward shock nor by a smooth "bright ring" at the reverse shock. Instead we find that the $>$15 keV emission is dominated by knots near the center of the remnant and dimmer filaments near the remnant's outer rim. These regions are fit with unbroken power-laws in the 15--50 keV bandpass, though the central knots hav…
We present an interpretation of the time variability of the $X$-ray flux recently reported from a multi-epoch campaign of $15$ years observations of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A by {\it Chandra}. We show for the first time quantitatively that the $[4.2-6]$ keV non-thermal flux increase up to $50\%$ traces the growth of the magnetic field due to vortical amplification mechanism at a reflection inward shock colliding with inner overdensities. The fast synchrotron cooling as compared with shock-acceleration time scale qualitatively supports the flux decrease.
We mapped 12CO J=1-0, 12CO J=2-1, 13CO J=1-0, and 13CO J=2-1 lines toward supernova remnant (SNR) Cassiopeia A with the IRAM 30m telescope. The molecular clouds (MCs) along the line of sight of Cas A do not show optically thin, shock-broadened 12CO lines ($ΔV \le 7$ km s$^{-1}$ toward Cas A), or high-temperature features from shock heating ($T_k \le 22$ K toward Cas A). Therefore, we suggest that there is no physical evidence to support that the SNR is impacting the molecular gas. All the detected MCs are likely in front of Cas A, as implied by the HCO+ absorption line detected in the same vel…
The surface of hot neutron stars is covered by a thin atmosphere. If there is accretion after neutron star formation, the atmosphere could be composed of light elements (H or He); if no accretion takes place or if thermonuclear reactions occur after accretion, heavy elements (for example, Fe) are expected. Despite detailed searches, observations have been unable to confirm the atmospheric composition of isolated neutron stars. Here we report an analysis of archival observations of the compact X-ray source in the centre of the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant. We show that a carbon atmosphere neu…
Supernova remnants (SNRs) are widely considered to be sites of Galactic cosmic ray (CR) acceleration. Vela is one of the nearest Galactic composite SNRs to Earth accompanied by the Vela pulsar and its pulsar wind nebula (PWN) Vela X. The Vela SNR is one of the most studied remnants and it benefits from precise estimates of various physical parameters such as distance and age. Therefore, it is a perfect object for a detailed study of physical processes in SNRs. The Vela SNR expands into the highly inhomogeneous cloudy interstellar medium (ISM) and its dynamics is determined by the heating and e…
Titanium-rich subluminous supernovae are rare and challenge current SN nucleosynthesis models. We present a model in which ejecta from a standard Supernova is impacted by a second explosion of the neutron star (a Quark-nova), resulting in spallation reactions that lead to 56Ni destruction and 44Ti creation under the right conditions. Basic calculations of the spallation products shows that a delay between the two explosions of ~ 5 days reproduces the observed abundance of 44Ti in Cas A and explains its low luminosity as a result of the destruction of 56Ni. Our results could have important impl…
We use new large area far infrared maps ranging from 65 - 500 microns obtained with the AKARI and the Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST) missions to characterize the dust emission toward the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant (SNR). Using the AKARI high resolution data we find a new "tepid" dust grain population at a temperature of ~35K and with an estimated mass of 0.06 solar masses. This component is confined to the central area of the SNR and may represent newly-formed dust in the unshocked supernova ejecta. While the mass of tepid dust that we measure is insufficient …
We present results of a recent Chandra X-ray Observatory observation of the central compact object (CCO) in the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A. This observation was obtained in an instrumental configuration that combines a high spatial resolution with a minimum spectral distortion, and it allowed us to search for pulsations with periods longer than 0.68 s. We found no evidence of extended emission associated with the CCO, nor statistically significant pulsations (the 3-sigma upper limit on pulsed fraction is about 16%). The fits of the CCO spectrum with the power-law model yield a large photon…
The 340-year old supernova remnant Cassiopeia A at 3.4 kpc distance is the best-studied young core-collapse supernova remnant. Nucleosynthesis yields in radioactive isotopes have been studied with different methods, in particular for production and ejection of $^{44}$Ti and $^{56}$Ni which originate from the innermost regions of the supernova. $^{44}$Ti was first discovered in this remnant, but is not seen consistently in other core-collapse sources. We analyse the observations accumulated with the SPI spectrometer on INTEGRAL, together with an improved instrumental background method, to achie…
An analysis of Chandra ACIS data for two relatively bright and narrow portions of the northwestern rim of G266.2-1.2 (a.k.a. RX J0852.0-4622 or Vela Jr.) reveal evidence of a radial displacement of 2.40 +/- 0.56 arcsec between 2003 and 2008. The corresponding expansion rate (0.42 +/- 0.10 arcsec/yr or 13.6 +/- 4.2%/kyr) is about half the rate reported for an analysis of XMM-Newton data from a similar, but not identical, portion of the rim over a similar, but not identical, time interval (0.84 +/- 0.23 arcsec/yr, Katsuda et al. 2008a). If the Chandra rate is representative of the remnant as a w…
We investigate the effect of the circumstellar medium density profile on the X-ray emission from outer ejecta knots in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant using the 1 Ms Chandra observation. The spectra of a number of radial series of ejecta knots at various positions around the remnant are analyzed using techniques similar to those devised in previous papers. We can obtain a reasonable match to our data for a circumstellar density profile proportional to r^-2 as would arise from the steady dense wind of a red supergiant, but the agreement is improved if we introduce a small (0.2-0.3 pc) centra…
Core-collapse supernovae can condense large masses of dust post-explosion. However, sputtering and grain-grain collisions during the subsequent passage of the dust through the reverse shock can potentially destroy a significant fraction of the newly formed dust before it can reach the interstellar medium. Here we show that in oxygen-rich supernova remnants like Cassiopeia A the penetration and trapping within silicate grains of the same impinging ions of oxygen, silicon and magnesium that are responsible for grain surface sputtering can significantly reduce the net loss of grain material. We m…
Abridged. We aim at exploring to which extent the remnant keeps memory of the asymmetries that develop stochastically in the neutrino-heating layer due to hydrodynamic instabilities (e.g., convective overturn and the standing accretion shock instability) during the first second after core bounce. We coupled a 3D HD model of a neutrino-driven SN explosion with 3D MHD/HD simulations of the remnant formation. The simulations cover 2000 years of expansion and include all physical processes relevant to describe the complexities in the SN evolution and the subsequent interaction of the stellar debri…
We report on the result of He abundance analysis of dense circumstellar clumps in the young supernova remnant Cassiopeia A. These clumps, which are called quasi-stationary flocculi (QSFs), are known from previous optical studies to be enriched in He along with N, but the degree of He overabundance relative to H has remained uncertain. For several QSFs with near-infrared spectroscopic data, we have analyzed their He I 1.083 $μ$m/Pa$γ$ ratios together with the ratios of [Fe II] lines by using the Raymond shock code. According to our analysis, He is overabundant relative to H by a factor of $\les…
Based largely on energy budget considerations and the observed cosmic-ray (CR) ionic composition, supernova remnant (SNR) blast waves are the most likely sources of CR ions with energies at least up to the "knee" near 3 PeV. Shocks in young shell-type TeV-bright SNRs are surely producing TeV particles, but the emission could be dominated by ions producing neutral pion-decay emission or electrons producing inverse-Compton gamma-rays. Unambiguously identifying the GeV-TeV emission process in a particular SNR will not only help pin down the origin of CRs, it will add significantly to our understa…
The Vela supernova remnant is the closest supernova remnant to Earth containing an active pulsar, the Vela pulsar (PSR B0833-45). This pulsar is the archetype of the middle-aged pulsar class and powers a bright pulsar wind nebula (PWN), Vela-X, spanning a region of 2° x 3° south of the pulsar and observed in the radio, X-ray and very high energy gamma-ray domains. The detection of the Vela-X PWN by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) was reported in the first year of the mission. Subsequently, we have re-investigated this complex region and performed a detailed morphological and spectral anal…
We present Hubble Space Telescope WFC3/IR images of the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant that survey its high-velocity, S-rich debris in the NE jet and SW counterjet regions through [S III] 9069, 9531 and [S II] 10,287 - 10,370 line emissions. We identify nearly 3400 sulfur emitting knots concentrated in ~120 degree wide opposing streams, almost triple the number previously known. The vast majority of these ejecta knots lie at projected distances well out ahead of the remnant's forward blast wave and main shell ejecta, extending to angular distance of 320" to the NE and 260" to the SW from the c…
We study the geometry and dynamics of the Vela complex including the Vela supernova remnant (SNR), the binary system gamma2 Velorum and the Gum nebula. We show that the Vela SNR belongs to a subclass of non-Sedov adiabatic remnants in a cloudy interstellar medium (ISM), the dynamics of which is determined by the heating and evaporation of ISM clouds. We explain observable characteristics of the Vela SNR with a SN explosion with energy 1.4 x 10^50 ergs near the step-like boundary of the ISM with low intercloud densities (~ 10^{-3} cm^{-3}) and with a volume-averaged density of clouds evaporated…
The central strong activities in core-collapse supernovae expect to produce the overturning of the Fe- and Si/O-rich ejecta during the supernova explosion based on multi-dimensional simulations. X-ray observations of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A have indicated that the Fe-rich ejecta lies outside the Si-rich materials in the southeastern region, which is consistent with the hypothesis on the inversion of the ejecta. We investigate the kinematic and nucleosynthetic properties of the inverted ejecta layers in detail to understand its formation process using the data taken by the Chandra X-…
The medium-lived 44Ti isotope is synthesised by explosive Si-burning in core-collapse supernovae. It is extremely sensitive to the dynamics of the explosion and therefore can be used to indirectly probe the explosion scenario. The young supernova remnant Cassiopeia A is to date the only source of gamma-ray lines from 44Ti decay. The emission flux has been measured by CGRO/COMPTEL, BeppoSAX/PDS and INTEGRAL/IBIS. The high-resolution spectrometer SPI on-board the INTEGRAL satellite can provide spectrometric information about the emission. The line profiles reflect the kinematics of the 44Ti in C…
The Vela supernova remnant displays several ejecta, which are fragment-like features protruding beyond the front of its primary blast shock wave. They appear to be "shrapnel", bowshock-shaped relics of the supernova explosion. One of these pieces of shrapnel (A), located in the northeastern edge of the remnant, is peculiar because its X-ray spectrum exhibits a high Si abundance, in contrast to the other observed ejecta fragments, which show enhanced O, Ne, and Mg abundances. We present the analysis of another fragment located opposite to shrapnel A with respect to the center of the shell, in t…
Observations in all electromagnetic bands show that many supernova remnants (SNRs) have a very aspherical shape. This can be the result of asymmetries in the supernova explosion or a clumpy circumstellar medium. We study the generation of inhomogeneities and the mixing of elements arising from these two sources in multidimensional hydrodynamic simulations of the propagation of a supernova blast wave into a cloudy environment. We model a specific SNR, Vela Jr (RX J0852.0-4622). By comparing our results with recent observations, we can constrain the properties of the explosion. We find that a ve…
Recent multi-dimensional simulations suggest that high-entropy buoyant plumes help massive stars to explode. Outwardly protruding iron-rich fingers in the galactic supernova remnant Cassiopeia A are uniquely suggestive of this picture. Detecting signatures of specific elements synthesized in the high-entropy nuclear burning regime (i.e., $α$-rich freeze out) would be among the strongest substantiating evidence. Here we report the discovery of such elements, stable Ti and Cr, at a confidence level greater than 5$σ$ in the shocked high-velocity iron-rich ejecta of Cassiopeia A. We found the obse…
We present new reddening measurements towards the young supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, using two techniques not previously applied to this object. Our observations of the near-infrared [Fe II] 1.257 micron and 1.644 micron lines show the extinction to be highly variable across the remnant, increasing towards the west and the south, consistent with previous radio and X-ray observations. While the absolute value of AV as determined by the [Fe II] lines is uncertain due to conflicting calculations and observations of their intrinsic flux ratio, parts of the remnant without previous optical measu…
We explore the thermal state of the neutron star in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant using the recent result of Ho & Heinke (Nature, 462, 71 (2009)) that the thermal radiation of this star is well-described by a carbon atmosphere model and the emission comes from the entire stellar surface. Starting from neutron star cooling theory, we formulate a robust method to extract neutrino cooling rates of thermally relaxed stars at the neutrino cooling stage from observations of thermal surface radiation. We show how to compare these rates with the rates of standard candles -- stars with non-superfl…
Observations of the SNR Cassiopeia A (Cas A) show asymmetries in the reverse shock that cannot be explained by models describing a remnant expanding through a spherically symmetric wind of the progenitor star. We investigate whether a past interaction of Cas A with an asymmetric circumstellar shell can account for the observed asymmetries. We performed 3D MHD simulations that describe the remnant evolution from the SN to its interaction with a circumstellar shell. The initial conditions are provided by a 3D neutrino-driven SN model whose morphology resembles Cas A. We explored the parameter sp…
