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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
earth and planetary sciences
SPIRITS 16tn in NGC 3556: A Heavily Obscured and Low-luminosity Supernova at 8.8 Mpc
Astrophysical Journal, Volume 863, No. 1, Article 20, Year 2018
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Description
We present the discovery by the SPitzer InfraRed Intensive Transients Survey (SPIRITS) of a likely supernova (SN) in NGC 3556 (M108) at only 8.8 Mpc that was not detected by optical searches. A luminous infrared (IR) transient at M [4.5] = -16.7 mag (Vega), SPIRITS 16tn is coincident with a dust lane in the inclined, star-forming disk of the host. Using observations in the IR, optical, and radio, we attempt to determine the nature of this event. We estimate A V ≈ 8-9 mag of extinction, placing it among the three most highly obscured IR-discovered SNe. The [4.5] light curve declined at a rate of 0.013 mag day-1, and the [3.6]-[4.5] color increased from 0.7 to ≳1.0 mag by 184.7 days post discovery. Optical/IR spectroscopy shows a red continuum but no clearly discernible features, preventing a definitive spectroscopic classification. Radio observations constrain the radio luminosity of SPIRITS 16tn to L ν ≲ 1024 erg s-1 Hz-1 between 3 and 15 GHz, excluding many varieties of core-collapse SNe. An SN Ia is ruled out by the observed IR color and lack of spectroscopic features from Fe-peak elements. SPIRITS 16tn was fainter at [4.5] than typical stripped-envelope SNe by ≈1 mag. Comparison of the spectral energy distribution to SNe II suggests that SPIRITS 16tn was both highly obscured and intrinsically dim, possibly akin to the low-luminosity SN 2005cs. We infer the presence of an IR dust echo powered by an initial peak luminosity of the transient of 5 × 1040 erg s-1 ≲ L peak ≲ 4 × 1043 erg s-1, consistent with the observed range for SNe II. This discovery illustrates the power of IR surveys to overcome the compounding effects of visible extinction and optically subluminous events in completing the inventory of nearby SNe. © 2018. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.
Authors & Co-Authors
Jencson, Jacob E.
United States, Pasadena
California Institute of Technology
Kasliwal, Rachna
United States, Pasadena
California Institute of Technology
Adams, Scott M.
United States, Pasadena
California Institute of Technology
Bond, Howard E.
United States, University Park
Pennsylvania State University
United States, Baltimore
Space Telescope Science Institute
Lau, Ryan M.
United States, Pasadena
California Institute of Technology
Johansson, Joel P.
Sweden, Uppsala
Uppsala Universitet
Horesh, Assaf
Israel, Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Mooley, Kunal P.
United Kingdom, Oxford
University of Oxford
Fender, Robert P.
United Kingdom, Oxford
University of Oxford
De, Kishalay
United States, Pasadena
California Institute of Technology
Masci, Frank J.
Unknown Affiliation
Cody, Ann Marie
United States, Moffett Field
Nasa Ames Research Center
Blagorodnova, Nadia
United States, Pasadena
California Institute of Technology
Fox, Ori D.
United States, Baltimore
Space Telescope Science Institute
Gehrz, Robert D.
United States, Minneapolis
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Milne, Peter A.
United States, Tucson
The University of Arizona
Perley, Daniel A.
Denmark, Copenhagen
Københavns Universitet
United Kingdom, Liverpool
Liverpool John Moores University
Smith, Nathan
United States, Tucson
The University of Arizona
van Dyk, Schuyler D.
Unknown Affiliation
Statistics
Citations: 8
Authors: 19
Affiliations: 11
Identifiers
Doi:
10.3847/1538-4357/aacf8b
ISSN:
0004637X
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study
Study Approach
Quantitative