Evolution of the High Velocity X-Ray Emission in SN 1987A
Abstract
Chandra HETG observations of SN 1987A in late 1999 showed very broad lines with observed FWHM of order 7000 km/s (Michael et al. 2002). At this time (SN day 4600) the blastwave was already interacting with the HII region around the progenitor and optical spots had recently appeared. High-resolution spectra taken from May 2003 ( day 5900) to the present by XMM-Newton and Chandra have been well fit by models with FWHM less than 2000 km/s (Zhekov et al. 2005; Dewey et al. 2008; Sturm et al 2010). The emission is increasingly dominated by these narrower components as the blastwave encounters more of the dense equatorial ring. However emission from the HII region out of the ring plane is still expected at late times and would contribute a high-velocity component to the spectra.
We analyze 6 epochs of SN 1987A grating data and include an additional very broad component in the spectral model. We find that deep HETG 2007 data are better fit when one quarter of the flux comes from a component with FWHM 8500 km/s, and that RGS 2003 data show an improved fit with a very-broad fraction that is between the 1999 and 2007 values. Later data continue a progression to lower, but still significant, very-broad fractions. The measurements are discussed in terms of the density and extent of the out-of-plane HII region, hydrodynamical simulations, and 3D models of SN 1987A's emission. Support for this work was provided by NASA/USA through contract NAS8-03060 to the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) and further SAO sub-contracts TM9-0004X to VVD (U Chicago) and SV3-73016 to MIT for support of the CXC.- Publication:
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American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #217
- Pub Date:
- January 2011
- Bibcode:
- 2011AAS...21725628D