Issue |
A&A
Volume 615, July 2018
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | A150 | |
Number of page(s) | 14 | |
Section | Interstellar and circumstellar matter | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201731583 | |
Published online | 31 July 2018 |
Asymmetric Type-Ia supernova origin of W49B as revealed from spatially resolved X-ray spectroscopic study
1
Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam,
PO Box 94249,
1090 GE
Amsterdam,
The Netherlands
e-mail: p.zhou,j.vink@uva.nl
2
School of Astronomy and Space Science, Nanjing University,
Nanjing
210023,
PR China
3
GRAPPA, University of Amsterdam,
PO Box 94249,
1090 GE
Amsterdam,
The Netherlands
Received:
17
July
2017
Accepted:
23
March
2018
The origin of the asymmetric supernova remnant (SNR) W49B has been a matter of debate: is it produced by a rare jet-driven core-collapse (CC) supernova, or by a normal supernova that is strongly shaped by its dense environment? Aiming to uncover the explosion mechanism and origin of the asymmetric, centrally filled X-ray morphology of W49B, we have performed spatially resolved X-ray spectroscopy and a search for potential point sources. We report new candidate point sources inside W49B. The Chandra X-ray spectra from W49B are well-characterized by two-temperature gas components (~0.27 keV + 0.6–2.2 keV). The hot component gas shows a large temperature gradient from the northeast to the southwest and is over-ionized in most regions with recombination timescales of 1–10 × 1011 cm−3 s. The Fe element shows strong lateral distribution in the SNR east, while the distribution of Si, S, Ar, Ca is relatively smooth and nearly axially symmetric. Asymmetric Type-Ia explosion of a Chandrasekhar-mass white dwarf (WD) well-explains the abundance ratios and metal distribution of W49B, whereas a jet-driven explosion and normal CC models fail to describe the abundance ratios and large masses of iron-group elements. A model based on a multi-spot ignition of the WD can explain the observed high MMn∕MCr value (0.8–2.2). The bar-like morphology is mainly due to a density enhancement in the center, given the good spatial correlation between gas density and X-ray brightness. The recombination ages and the Sedov age consistently suggest a revised SNR age of 5–6 kyr. This study suggests that despite the presence of candidate point sources projected within the boundary of this SNR, W49B is likely a Type-Ia SNR, which suggests that Type-Ia supernovae can also result in mixed-morphology SNRs.
Key words: ISM: individual objects: W49B – ISM: supernova remnants – nuclear reactions, nucleosynthesis, abundances – white dwarfs
© ESO 2018
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