Supernova (SN) 2018cow (or AT2018cow) is an optical transient detected in the galaxy CGCG 137-068. It has been classified as a SN due to various characteristics in its optical spectra. The transient is also a bright X-ray source. We present results of the analysis of ~62ks of X-ray observations taken with the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory over 27 days. We found a variable behavior in the 0.3-10 keV X-ray light curve of SN 2018cow, with variability timescales of days. The observed X-ray variability could be due to the interaction between the SN ejecta and a non-uniform circumstellar medium, perhaps related to previous mass ejections from a luminous-blue-variable-like progenitor.
@article{arxiv.1807.06369,
title = {X-ray Swift observations of SN 2018cow},
author = {L. E. Rivera Sandoval and T. J. Maccarone and A. Corsi and P. J. Brown and D. Pooley and J. C. Wheeler},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1807.06369},
year = {2019}
}
Comments
Matches order of figures and corrects minor typos in units, as seeing in the MNRASL version