SN 2008D

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SN 2008D
Sn2008hdani.gif
X-ray (left) and visible light (right) images of SN 2008D (1), and SN 2007uy (2).
Event type Supernova   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Ibc
DateJanuary 9, 2008
Constellation Lynx
Right ascension 09h 09m 30.55s
Declination +33° 08 20.81
Epoch J2000
Galactic coordinates 191.5472 +42.1883
Distance27  Mpc (88  Mly)
Host NGC 2770
ProgenitorUnknown
Progenitor typeUnknown
Colour (B-V)Unknown
Notable featuresFirst supernova detected by the X-rays released very early on in its formation.
Other designationsSN 2008D
  Commons-logo.svg Related media on Commons
SWIFT images galaxy NGC 2770 with SN 2007uy before SN 2008D, with X-ray view (left) and visible light (right). 211875main2 beflabelsnova 20080213 350px.jpg
SWIFT images galaxy NGC 2770 with SN 2007uy before SN 2008D, with X-ray view (left) and visible light (right).

SN 2008D is a supernova detected with NASA's Swift X-ray telescope. The explosion of the supernova precursor star, in the spiral galaxy NGC 2770 (88 million light years away (27 Mpc), [1] was detected on January 9, 2008, by Carnegie-Princeton fellows Alicia Soderberg and Edo Berger, and Albert Kong and Tom Maccarone independently using Swift. [1] They alerted eight other orbiting and ground-based observatories to record the event. This was the first time that astronomers have ever observed a supernova as it occurred. [2] [3] [4]

Contents

The supernova was determined to be of Type Ibc. The velocities measured from SN2008D indicated expansion rates of more than 10,000 kilometers per second. The explosion was off-center, with gas on one side of the explosion moving outward faster than on the other. This was the first time the X-ray emission pattern of a supernova (which only lasted about five minutes) was captured at the moment of its birth. Now that it is known what X-ray pattern to look for, the next generation of X-ray satellites is expected to find hundreds of supernovae every year exactly when they explode, which will allow searches for neutrino and gravitational wave bursts that are predicted to accompany the collapse of stellar cores and the birth of neutron stars.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supernova</span> Astrophysical phenomenon

A supernova is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. A supernova occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star, or when a white dwarf is triggered into runaway nuclear fusion. The original object, called the progenitor, either collapses to a neutron star or black hole, or is completely destroyed to form a diffuse nebula. The peak optical luminosity of a supernova can be comparable to that of an entire galaxy before fading over several weeks or months.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SN 1987A</span> 1987 supernova event in the constellation Dorado

SN 1987A was a type II supernova in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf satellite galaxy of the Milky Way. It occurred approximately 51.4 kiloparsecs from Earth and was the closest observed supernova since Kepler's Supernova in 1604. Light and neutrinos from the explosion reached Earth on February 23, 1987 and was designated "SN 1987A" as the first supernova discovered that year. Its brightness peaked in May of that year, with an apparent magnitude of about 3.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kepler's Supernova</span> Supernova visible from Earth in the 17th century

SN 1604, also known as Kepler's Supernova, Kepler's Nova or Kepler's Star, was a Type Ia supernova that occurred in the Milky Way, in the constellation Ophiuchus. Appearing in 1604, it is the most recent supernova in the Milky Way galaxy to have been unquestionably observed by the naked eye, occurring no farther than 6 kiloparsecs from Earth. Before the adoption of the current naming system for supernovae, it was named for Johannes Kepler, the German astronomer who described it in De Stella Nova.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Superluminous supernova</span> Supernova at least ten times more luminous than a standard supernova

A super-luminous supernova is a type of stellar explosion with a luminosity 10 or more times higher than that of standard supernovae. Like supernovae, SLSNe seem to be produced by several mechanisms, which is readily revealed by their light-curves and spectra. There are multiple models for what conditions may produce an SLSN, including core collapse in particularly massive stars, millisecond magnetars, interaction with circumstellar material, or pair-instability supernovae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory</span> NASA satellite of the Explorer program

Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, previously called the Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Explorer, is a NASA three-telescope space observatory for studying gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and monitoring the afterglow in X-ray, and UV/visible light at the location of a burst. It was launched on 20 November 2004, aboard a Delta II launch vehicle. Headed by principal investigator Neil Gehrels until his death in February 2017, the mission was developed in a joint partnership between Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and an international consortium from the United States, United Kingdom, and Italy. The mission is operated by Pennsylvania State University as part of NASA's Medium Explorer program (MIDEX).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SN 1006</span> Supernova observed from Earth in the year 1006 CE

SN 1006 was a supernova that is likely the brightest observed stellar event in recorded history, reaching an estimated −7.5 visual magnitude, and exceeding roughly sixteen times the brightness of Venus. Appearing between April 30 and May 1, 1006, in the constellation of Lupus, this "guest star" was described by observers across China, Japan, modern-day Iraq, Egypt, and Europe, and was possibly recorded in North American petroglyphs. Some reports state it was clearly visible in the daytime. Modern astronomers now consider its distance from Earth to be about 7,200 light-years or 2,200 parsecs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Type Ia supernova</span> Type of supernova in binary systems

A Type Ia supernova is a type of supernova that occurs in binary systems in which one of the stars is a white dwarf. The other star can be anything from a giant star to an even smaller white dwarf.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GRB 060218</span> February 18, 2006 gamma-ray burst in the constellation Aries

GRB 060218 was a gamma-ray burst with unusual characteristics never seen before. This GRB was detected by the Swift satellite on February 18, 2006, and its name is derived from the date. It was located in the constellation Aries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of supernova observation</span> Ancient and modern recorded observations of supernovae explosions

The known history of supernova observation goes back to 1006 AD. All earlier proposals for supernova observations are speculations with many alternatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Type Ib and Ic supernovae</span> Types of supernovae caused by a star collapsing

Type Ib and Type Ic supernovae are categories of supernovae that are caused by the stellar core collapse of massive stars. These stars have shed or been stripped of their outer envelope of hydrogen, and, when compared to the spectrum of Type Ia supernovae, they lack the absorption line of silicon. Compared to Type Ib, Type Ic supernovae are hypothesized to have lost more of their initial envelope, including most of their helium. The two types are usually referred to as stripped core-collapse supernovae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SN 2006gy</span> 2006 hypernova in constellation Perseus

SN 2006gy was an extremely energetic supernova, also referred to as a hypernova, that was discovered on September 18, 2006. It was first observed by Robert Quimby and P. Mondol, and then studied by several teams of astronomers using facilities that included the Chandra, Lick, and Keck Observatories. In May 2007, NASA and several of the astronomers announced the first detailed analyses of the supernova, describing it as the "brightest stellar explosion ever recorded". In October 2007, Quimby announced that SN 2005ap had broken SN 2006gy's record as the brightest-ever recorded supernova, and several subsequent discoveries are brighter still. Time magazine listed the discovery of SN 2006gy as third in its Top 10 Scientific Discoveries for 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 2770</span> Spiral galaxy in the constellation Lynx

NGC 2770 is a spiral galaxy in the northern constellation of Lynx, near the northern constellation border with Cancer. It was discovered by German-born astronomer William Herschel on December 7, 1785. J. L. E. Dreyer described it as, "faint, large, much extended 150°, mottled but not resolved, 2 stars to north". NGC 2770 was the target for the first binocular image produced by the Large Binocular Telescope.

SN 2007uy was a supernova that occurred in the spiral galaxy NGC 2770. It was discovered by Yoji Hirose on December 31, 2007 from Chigasaki city in Japan, approximately four days after the explosion. The position of the supernova was offset 20.6″ east and 15.5″ south of the galaxy's nucleus, near a star-forming region. It was identified as a Type Ib supernova from its spectrum a week before reaching maximum, and appeared the most similar to SN 2004gq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 7424</span> Galaxy in the constellation Grus

NGC 7424 is a barred spiral galaxy located 37.5 million light-years away in the southern constellation Grus. Its size makes it similar to our own galaxy, the Milky Way. It is called a "grand design" galaxy because of its well defined spiral arms. Two supernovae and two ultraluminous X-ray sources have been discovered in NGC 7424.

GRB 980425 was a gamma-ray burst (GRB) that was detected on 25 April 1998 at 21:49 UTC. GRB 980425 occurred at approximately the same time as SN 1998bw, providing the first evidence that gamma-ray bursts and supernovae are related, and at a distance of 40 megaparsecs (130,000,000 ly), remains the closest GRB yet observed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alicia M. Soderberg</span> American astronomer

Alicia Margarita Soderberg is an American astrophysicist whose research focused on supernovae. She was an assistant professor of astronomy at Harvard University and a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 1187</span> Barred spiral galaxy in Eridanus

NGC 1187 is a barred spiral galaxy located about 60 million light-years away in the constellation of Eridanus. It was discovered on December 9, 1784 by the astronomer William Herschel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 3631</span> Galaxy in the constellation Ursa Major

NGC 3631 is a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Ursa Major. It is located at a distance of about 35 million light years from Earth, which, given its apparent dimensions, means that NGC 3631 is about 60,000 light years across. It was discovered by William Herschel on April 14, 1789. It is a grand design spiral galaxy seen face on.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SN 2018cow</span> Supernova event of June 2018 in the constellation Hercules

SN 2018cow was a very powerful astronomical explosion, 10–100 times brighter than a normal supernova, spatially coincident with galaxy CGCG 137-068, approximately 200 million ly (60 million pc) distant in the Hercules constellation. It was discovered on 16 June 2018 by the ATLAS-HKO telescope, and had generated significant interest among astronomers throughout the world. Later, on 10 July 2018, and after AT 2018cow had significantly faded, astronomers, based on follow-up studies with the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT), formally described AT 2018cow as SN 2018cow, a type Ib supernova, showing an "unprecedented spectrum for a supernova of this class"; although others, mostly at first but also more recently, have referred to it as a type Ic-BL supernova. An explanation to help better understand the unique features of AT 2018cow has been presented. AT2018cow is one of the few reported Fast Blue Optical Transients (FBOTs) observed in the Universe. In May 2020, however, a much more powerful FBOT than AT 2018cow was reportedly observed.

SN 2016aps is the brightest and most energetic supernova explosion ever recorded. It released more energy than ASASSN-15lh. In addition to the sheer amount of energy released, an unusually large amount of the energy was released in the form of radiation, probably due to the interaction of the supernova ejecta and a previously lost gas shell.

References

  1. 1 2 Soderberg, Alicia; Berger, Edo; Page, K. L.; Schady, P.; Parrent, J.; Pooley, D.; Wang, X.-Y.; Ofek, E. O.; et al. (2008), "An extremely luminous X-ray outburst at the birth of a supernova", Nature, 453 (7194): 469–474, arXiv: 0802.1712 , Bibcode:2008Natur.453..469S, doi:10.1038/nature06997, PMID   18497815, S2CID   453215
  2. "SN 2008D: First Supernova Observed Live". Universe for Facts. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
  3. "Supernova Birth Seen For First Time". ScienceDaily. 21 May 2008.
  4. "Birth cry of a supernova". Discover Magazine. 21 May 2008. Archived from the original on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 12 October 2008.