The Supernova Spectropolarimetry Project: Results from Multi-Epoch Observations of the Type IIb SN 2011dh
Abstract
The Supernova Spectropolarimetry Project is a recently formed collaboration between observers and theorists that focuses on decoding the complex, time-dependent spectropolarimetric behavior of supernovae (SNe) of all types. Using the CCD Imaging/Spectropolarimeter (SPOL) at the 61" Kuiper, the 90" Bok, and the 6.5-m MMT telescopes, we obtain multi-epoch observations of each target, aiming to construct the most comprehensive survey to date of supernovae in polarized light. Preliminary results from the SNSPOL project provide support for the increasingly popular hypothesis that many supernovae are aspherical explosion events. Thus far, we have observed 27 different SNe, many over multiple epochs, over the course of the last three years. While the history and evolution of these events is often studied with photometric and spectroscopic information, most supernovae are not studied with the combined advantage that spectropolarimetric data provides. The use of polarimetry allows us to probe the extent of the asphericity of the explosions while the use of spectroscopy allows us to characterize this asphericity across a variety of chemical species individually and as a function of velocity. Modern 3-D model simulations favor an explosion mechanism that is often inherently asymmetric in nature. Here, we showcase some of our initial results for the nearby type-IIb SN 2011dh that demonstrate the unique information that spectropolarimetric observations provide.
- Publication:
-
American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #223
- Pub Date:
- January 2014
- Bibcode:
- 2014AAS...22335423B