No Arabic abstract
Astrophysical shocks at all scales, from those in the heliosphere up to the cosmological shock waves, are typically collisionless, because the thickness of their jump region is much shorter than the collisional mean free path. Across these jumps, electrons, protons, and ions are expected to be heated at different temperatures. Supernova remnants (SNRs) are ideal targets to study collisionless processes because of their bright post-shock emission and fast shocks. Although optical observations of Balmer-dominated shocks in young SNRs showed that the post-shock proton temperature is higher than the electron temperature, the actual dependence of the post-shock temperature on the particle mass is still widely debated. We tackle this longstanding issue through the analysis of deep multi-epoch and high-resolution observations of the youngest nearby supernova remnant, SN 1987A, made with the Chandra X-ray telescope. We introduce a novel data analysis method by studying the observed spectra in close comparison with a dedicated full 3-D hydrodynamic simulation. The simulation is able to reproduce self-consistently the whole broadening of the spectral lines of many ions altogether. We can therefore measure the post shock temperature of protons and selected ions through comparison of the model with observations. We have obtained information about the heating processes in collisional shocks by finding that the ion to proton temperature ratio is always significantly higher than one and increases linearly with the ion mass for a wide range of masses and shock parameters.
The possible detection of a compact object in the remnant of SN 1987A presents an unprecedented opportunity to follow its early evolution. The suspected detection stems from an excess of infrared emission from a dust blob near the compact objects predicted position. The infrared excess could be due to the decay of isotopes like 44Ti, accretion luminosity from a neutron star or black hole, magnetospheric emission or a wind originating from the spindown of a pulsar, or thermal emission from an embedded, cooling neutron star (NS 1987A). It is shown that the last possibility is the most plausible as the other explanations are disfavored by other observations and/or require fine-tuning of parameters. Not only are there indications the dust blob overlaps the predicted location of a kicked compact remnant, but its excess luminosity also matches the expected thermal power of a 30 year old neutron star. Furthermore, models of cooling neutron stars within the Minimal Cooling paradigm readily fit both NS 1987A and Cas A, the next-youngest known neutron star. If correct, a long heat transport timescale in the crust and a large effective stellar temperature are favored, implying relatively limited crustal n-1S0 superfluidity and an envelope with a thick layer of light elements, respectively. If the locations dont overlap, then pulsar spindown or accretion might be more likely, but the pulsars period and magnetic field or the accretion rate must be rather finely tuned. In this case, NS 1987A may have enhanced cooling and/or a heavy-element envelope.
High cadence ultraviolet, optical and near-infrared photometric and low-resolution spectroscopic observations of the peculiar Type II supernova (SN) 2018hna are presented. The early phase multiband light curves exhibit the adiabatic cooling envelope emission following the shock breakout up to ~14 days from the explosion. SN~2018hna has a rise time of $sim$,88 days in the V-band, similar to SN 1987A. A $rm^{56}Ni$ mass of ~0.087$pm$0.004 $rm M_{odot}$ is inferred for SN 2018hna from its bolometric light curve. Hydrodynamical modelling of the cooling phase suggests a progenitor with a radius ~50 $rm R_{odot}$, a mass of ~14-20 $rm M_{odot}$ and explosion energy of ~1.7-2.9$rm times$ $rm 10^{51} erg$. The smaller inferred radius of the progenitor than a standard red supergiant is indicative of a blue supergiant progenitor of SN 2018hna. A sub-solar metallicity (~0.3 $rm Z_{odot}$) is inferred for the host galaxy UGC 07534, concurrent with the low-metallicity environments of 1987A-like events.
Both CO and SiO have been observed at early and late phases in SN 1987A. H_2 was predicted to form at roughly the same time as these molecules, but was not detected at early epochs. Here we report the detection of NIR lines from H_2 at 2.12 mu and 2.40 mu in VLT/SINFONI spectra obtained between days 6489 and 10,120. The emission is concentrated to the core of the supernova in contrast to H-alpha and approximately coincides with the [Si I]/[Fe II] emission detected previously in the ejecta. Different excitation mechanisms and power sources of the emission are discussed. From the nearly constant H_2 luminosities we favour excitation resulting from the 44Ti decay.
Handed the baton from ROSAT, early observations of SN 1987A with the Chandra HETG and the XMM-Newton RGS showed broad lines with a FWHM of 10^4 km/s: the SN blast wave was continuing to shock the H II region around SN 1987A. Since then, its picturesque equatorial ring (ER) has been shocked, giving rise to a growing, dominant narrow-lined component. Even so, current HETG and RGS observations show that a broad component is still present and contributes 20% of the 0.5--2 keV flux. SN 1987As X-ray behavior can be modeled with a minimum of free parameters as the sum of two simple 1D hydrodynamic simulations: i) an on-going interaction with H II region material producing the broad emission lines and most of the 3--10 keV flux, and ii) an interaction with the dense, clumpy ER material that dominates the 0.5--2 keV flux. Toward the future, we predict a continued growth of the broad component but a drop in the 0.5--2 keV flux, once no new dense ER material is being shocked. When? Time, and new data, will tell.
Collisionless shocks, that is shocks mediated by electromagnetic processes, are customary in space physics and in astrophysics. They are to be found in a great variety of objects and environments: magnetospheric and heliospheric shocks, supernova remnants, pulsar winds and their nebulae, active galactic nuclei, gamma-ray bursts and clusters of galaxies shock waves. Collisionless shock microphysics enters at different stages of shock formation, shock dynamics and particle energization and/or acceleration. It turns out that the shock phenomenon is a multi-scale non-linear problem in time and space. It is complexified by the impact due to high-energy cosmic rays in astrophysical environments. This review adresses the physics of shock formation, shock dynamics and particle acceleration based on a close examination of available multi-wavelength or in-situ observations, analytical and numerical developments. A particular emphasize is made on the different instabilities triggered during the shock formation and in association with particle acceleration processes with regards to the properties of the background upstream medium. It appears that among the most important parameters the background magnetic field through the magnetization and its obliquity is the dominant one. The shock velocity that can reach relativistic speeds has also a strong impact over the development of the micro-instabilities and the fate of particle acceleration. Recent developments of laboratory shock experiments has started to bring some new insights in the physics of space plasma and astrophysical shock waves. A special section is dedicated to new laser plasma experiments probing shock physics