 A green-light light curve for SN 2021yfj, plotted from data published by Schulze et al.. [1] The red arrows show upper limits from nondetections. | |
| Event type | Supernova |
|---|---|
| Ien | |
| Date | 2021 |
| Right ascension | 01h 37m 46.17s |
| Declination | 24.442, -1.2549 |
| Epoch | J2000 |
| Distance | 2.2 billion ly |
| Notable features | Unusual spectra |
SN 2021yfj was a Type Ien supernova event known to potentially be the first supernova discovered of its type. [2] It occurred roughly 2.2 billion light years from Earth in the host galaxy SDSS J013746.19-011518.6. [3] [4]
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The progenitor star of SN 2021yfj was stripped of its oxygen, silicon and sulfur rich-layer with evidence that it had been expelled a massive, thick layer of silicon and sulfur before it had gone supernova. Exposing such an inner stellar layer is theoretically challenging and probably requires a rarely observed mass-loss mechanism. Early spectra taken of SN 2021yfj was unique in that its emission lines were dominated by prominent emission lines of highly ionized silicon, sulphur and argon while lacking prominent features from carbon, oxygen, helium and hydrogen. [3] [1]
There are several scenarios for the nature of the progenitor star of SN 2021yfj. The first scenario is that it was a high mass massive star that when it has gone supernova, its shell of material collided with each other before collapsing into a black hole. The second scenario is that it was a low mass massive star and the third scenario being a merger of two compact objects such was white dwarf or neutron stars. [5]