Dust Production and Particle Acceleration in Supernova 1987A Revealed with ALMA

Supernova (SN) explosions are crucial engines driving the evolution of galaxies by shock heating gas, increasing the metallicity, creating dust, and accelerating energetic particles. In 2012 we used the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array to observe SN 1987A, one of the best-observed supern...

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Published inarXiv.org
Main Authors Indebetouw, R, Matsuura, M, Dwek, E, Zanardo, G, Barlow, M J, Baes, M, Bouchet, P, Burrows, D N, Chevalier, R, Clayton, G C, Fransson, C, Gaensler, B, Kirshner, R, Lakicevic, M, Long, K S, Lundqvist, P, Marti-Vidal, I, Marcaide, J, McCray, R, Meixner, M, Ng, C Y, Park, S, Sonneborn, G, Staveley-Smith, L, Vlahakis, C, J van Loon
Format Paper Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 14.12.2013
Subjects
Cosmic dust
Dust
Ejecta
Emission
Energetic particles
Explosions
Galactic evolution
Galaxies
Metallicity
Particle acceleration
Physics - Astrophysics of Galaxies
Physics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Physics - Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Radio telescopes
Shock heating
Space telescopes
Stellar evolution
Supernova 1987A
Supernova remnants
Supernovae
Synchrotron radiation
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Summary:Supernova (SN) explosions are crucial engines driving the evolution of galaxies by shock heating gas, increasing the metallicity, creating dust, and accelerating energetic particles. In 2012 we used the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array to observe SN 1987A, one of the best-observed supernovae since the invention of the telescope. We present spatially resolved images at 450um, 870um, 1.4mm, and 2.8mm, an important transition wavelength range. Longer wavelength emission is dominated by synchrotron radiation from shock-accelerated particles, shorter wavelengths by emission from the largest mass of dust measured in a supernova remnant (>0.2Msun). For the first time we show unambiguously that this dust has formed in the inner ejecta (the cold remnants of the exploded star's core). The dust emission is concentrated to the center of the remnant, so the dust has not yet been affected by the shocks. If a significant fraction survives, and if SN 1987A is typical, supernovae are important cosmological dust producers.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.1312.4086