The Library
A flash of polarized optical light points to an aspherical ‘cow’
Tools
Maund, Justyn R, Höflich, Peter A, Steele, Iain A, Yang, Yi, Wiersema, Klaas, Kobayashi, Shiho, Jordana-Mitjans, Nuria, Mundell, Carole, Gomboc, Andreja, Guidorzi, Cristiano and Smith, Robert J (2023) A flash of polarized optical light points to an aspherical ‘cow’. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 521 (3). pp. 3323-3332. doi:10.1093/mnras/stad539 ISSN 1745-3933.
|
PDF
WRAP-flash-polarized-optical-light-points-aspherical-‘cow’-Wiersema-2023.pdf - Published Version - Requires a PDF viewer. Download (1488Kb) | Preview |
Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stad539
Abstract
The astronomical transient AT2018cow is the closest example of the new class of luminous, fast blue optical transients (FBOTs). Liverpool telescope RINGO3 observations of AT 2018cow are reported here, which constitute the earliest polarimetric observations of an FBOT. At 5.7days post-explosion, the optical emission of AT2018cow exhibited a chromatic polarization spike that reached ∼7 per cent at red wavelengths. This is the highest intrinsic polarization recorded for a non-relativistic explosive transient and is observed in multiple bands and at multiple epochs over the first night of observations, before rapidly declining. The apparent wavelength dependence of the polarization may arise through depolarization or dilution of the polarized flux, due to conditions in AT 2018cow at early times. A second ‘bump’ in the polarization is observed at blue wavelengths at ∼12days. Such a high polarization requires an extremely aspherical geometry that is only apparent for a brief period (<1 d), such as shock breakout through an optically thick disk. For a disk-like configuration, the ratio of the thickness to radial extent must be ∼10 per cent.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Subjects: | Q Science > QB Astronomy Q Science > QC Physics |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Physics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SWORD Depositor: | Library Publications Router | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Polarimetry , Polarization (Light) , Supernovae | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Publisher: | Oxford University Press | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ISSN: | 1745-3933 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Official Date: | May 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dates: |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Volume: | 521 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Number: | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Page Range: | pp. 3323-3332 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
DOI: | 10.1093/mnras/stad539 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Reuse Statement (publisher, data, author rights): | This article has been accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society © 2023 The Author(s) Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Free Access (unspecified licence, 'bronze OA') | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Date of first compliant deposit: | 25 July 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Date of first compliant Open Access: | 26 July 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
RIOXX Funder/Project Grant: |
|
Request changes or add full text files to a record
Repository staff actions (login required)
View Item |
Downloads
Downloads per month over past year