Related papers: The Most Luminous Supernovae
We present an analytical model that considers energy arising from a magnetar central engine. The results of fitting this model to the optical and X-ray light curves (LCs) of five long-duration $\gamma$-ray bursts (LGRBs) and two ultra-long…
The kinetic energy of supernovae (SNe) accompanied by gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) tends to cluster near E52 erg, with 2.E52 erg an upper limit to which no compelling exceptions are found (assuming a certain degree of asphericity), and it is…
Magnetar-powered supernova explosions are competitive models for explaining very luminous optical transits. However, these explosion models were mainly calculated in 1D. Radiation emitted from the magnetar snowplows into the previous…
SN2006tf is the third most luminous SN discovered so far, after SN2005ap and SN2006gy. SN2006tf is valuable because it provides a link between two regimes: (1) luminous type IIn supernovae powered by emission directly from interaction with…
Given its peak luminosity and early-time spectra, ASASSN-15lh was classified as the most luminous supernova (SN) ever discovered (Dong et al. 2016). Here we report a UV rebrightening of ASASSN-15lh observed with Swift during our follow-up…
It is generally accepted that Anomalous X-ray Pulsars (AXPs) and Soft Gamma-ray Repeaters (SGRs) are magnetars, i.e. neutron stars with extremely high surface magnetic fields ($B > 10^{14}$ G). The origin of these high magnetic fields is…
iPTF15dtg is a Type Ic supernova (SN) showing a broad light curve around maximum light, consistent with massive ejecta if we assume a radioactive-powering scenario. We study the late-time light curve of iPTF15dtg, which turned out to be…
Superluminous supernovae (SLSNe) are a rare class of stellar explosions with luminosities ~10-100 times greater than ordinary core-collapse supernovae. One popular model to explain the enhanced optical output of hydrogen-poor (Type I) SLSNe…
We present extensive datasets for a class of intermediate-luminosity optical transients known as "luminous red novae" (LRNe). They show double-peaked light curves, with an initial rapid luminosity rise to a blue peak (at -13 to -15 mag),…
We present the results of the monitoring campaign of the Type IIn supernova (SN) 2018cnf (aka ASASSN-18mr). It was discovered about 10 days before the maximum light (on MJD = 58293.4+-5.7 in the V band, with MV = -18.13+-0.15 mag). The…
In this paper, we fit the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of iPTF 16asu that has so far been classified as a luminous rapidly evolving broad-lined Ic supernova (SN Ic-BL), and re-construct its post-peak bolometric light curve. We find…
We report on our early photometric and spectroscopic observations of the extremely luminous Type II supernova (SN) 2008es. With an observed peak optical magnitude of m_V = 17.8 and at a redshift z = 0.213, SN 2008es had a peak absolute…
The super-luminous object ASASSN-15lh (SN2015L) is an extreme event with a total energy $E_{rad}\simeq 1.1\times 10^{52}$ erg in black body radiation on par with its kinetic energy $E_k$ in ejecta and a late time plateau in the UV, that…
SN 2003dh, one of the most luminous supernovae ever recorded, and the one with the highest measured velocities, accompanied gamma-ray burst 030329. Its rapid rise to maximum and equally rapid decline pose problems for any spherically…
We investigate the properties of Type IIP supernovae that are dominantly powered by the rotational kinetic energy of the newly born neutron star. While the spin-down of a magnetar has previously been proposed as a viable energy source in…
SN 2018hti was a very nearby (z=0.0614) superluminous supernova with an exceedingly bright absolute magnitude of -21.7 mag in r-band at maximum. The densely sampled pre-maximum light curves of SN 2018hti show a slow luminosity evolution and…
Magnetic spin-down of a millisecond neutron star has been proposed as the power source of hydrogen-poor "superluminous" supernovae (SLSNe-I). However, producing an unambiguous test that can distinguish this model from alternatives, such as…
We present photometry and spectroscopy of the slowly evolving superluminous Type IIn SN2015da. SN2015da is extraordinary for its very high peak luminosity, and also for sustaining a high luminosity for several years. Even at 8\,yr after…
Under the assumption that fast radio bursts (FRBs) are from coherent curvature emission powered by the dissipation of magnetic energy in the magnetosphere of neutron stars, we predict a maximum isotropic equivalent luminosity of (~2x10^{47}…
Supernovae arise from progenitor stars occupying the upper end of the initial mass function. Their extreme brightness allows individual massive stars to be detected at cosmic distances, lending supernovae great potential as tracers of the…