Related papers: A surge of light at the birth of a supernova

The lightcurve of the explosion of a star with a radius <10-100Rsun is powered mostly by radioactive decay. Observationally such events are dominated by hydrogen deficient progenitors and classified as Type I supernovae: white dwarf…

We derive a simple approximate model describing the early, hours to days, UV/optical supernova emission, which is produced by the expansion of the outer <~0.01 solar mass part of the shock-heated envelope, and precedes the optical emission…

Supernovae in binary star systems involve a hydrodynamical interaction between the ejecta and a binary companion. This collision results in shock heating and a modified density structure for the ejecta, both of which affect the light curve.…

We present X-ray, UV/optical, and radio observations of the stripped-envelope, core-collapse supernova (SN) 2011ei, one of the least luminous SNe IIb or Ib observed to date. Our observations begin with a discovery within 1 day of explosion…

It has long been expected that some massive stars produce stellar mass black holes (BHs) upon death. Unfortunately, the observational signature of such events has been unclear. It has even been suggested that the result may be an "unnova,"…

Supernovae (SNe) are stellar explosions driven by gravitational or thermonuclear energy, observed as electromagnetic radiation emitted over weeks or more. In all known SNe, this radiation comes from internal energy deposited in the…

The X-ray flash 080109, associated with SN 2008D, can be attributed to the shock breakout emission from a normal Type Ib/c supernova. If the observed emission is interpreted as blackbody emission, the temperature and radiated energy are…

Prior to explosion, a supernova progenitor slowly loses significant amounts of its hydrogen envelope in a stellar wind. After the explosion, the blastwave interacts with this wind producing synchrotron emission. A year of radio observations…

We present the discovery of the Type II supernova SN 2023ixf in M101 and follow-up photometric and spectroscopic observations, respectively, in the first month and week of its evolution. Our discovery was made within a day of estimated…

Modern cosmological simulations predict that the first generation of stars formed with a mass scale around 100 solar masses about 300-400 million years after the Big Bang. When the first stars reached the end of their lives, many of them…

Supernovae (SNe) are generally classified into Type I and Type II. Most SNe (~ 80%), including all the subtypes of Type II, and Type Ib/c, arise from the core-collapse of massive stars. During their lifetime, mass-loss from these stars…

We present the discovery of a red supergiant star that exploded as supernova 2003gd in the nearby spiral galaxy M74. The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the Gemini Telescope imaged this galaxy 6 to 9 months before the supernova explosion…

The spectrum of the first supernova light (i.e., the shock breakout and early cooling emission) is an important diagnostic for the state of the progenitor star just before explosion. We consider a streamlined model describing the emergent…

We present the photometric and spectroscopic evolution of the Type II supernova (SN II) SN 2017ivv (also known as ASASSN-17qp). Located in an extremely faint galaxy (M$_r=-10.3$ mag), SN 2017ivv shows an unprecedented evolution during the…

Most supernova explosions accompany the death of a massive star. These explosions give birth to neutron stars and black holes and eject solar masses of heavy elements. However, determining the mechanism of explosion has been a half-century…

We investigate the early-time light-curves of a large sample of 223 type II supernovae (SNe) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the Supernova Legacy Survey. Having a cadence of a few days and sufficient non-detections prior to explosion,…

We present the discovery and extensive early-time observations of the Type Ic supernova (SN) PTF12gzk. Our finely sampled light curves show a rise of 0.8mag within 2.5hr. Power-law fits [f(t)\sim(t-t_0)^n] to these data constrain the…

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…

We present Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of the type IIb supernova (SN) 2016gkg at 652, 1698, and 1795 days with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) and Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). Comparing to pre-explosion imaging from 2001…

Massive stars that lose their hydrogen-rich envelope down to a few tenths of a solar mass explode as extended type IIb supernovae, an intriguing subtype that links the hydrogen-rich type II supernovae with the hydrogen-poor type Ib and Ic.…