SNR 0104-72.3: A remnant of Type Ia Supernova in a Star-forming region?

Abstract

We report our 110 ks Chandra observations of the supernova remnant (SNR) 0104-72.3 in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). The X-ray morphology shows two prominent lobes along the northwest-southeast direction and a soft faint arc in the east. Previous low resolution X-ray images attributed the unresolved emission from the southeastern lobe to a Be/X-ray star. Our high resolution Chandra data clearly shows that this emission is diffuse, shock-heated plasma, with negligible X-ray emission from the Be star. The eastern arc is positionally coincident with a filament seen in optical and infrared observations. Its X-ray spectrum is well fit by plasma of normal SMC abundances, suggesting that it is from shocked ambient gas. The X-ray spectra of the lobes show overabundant Fe, which is interpreted as emission from the reverse-shocked Fe-rich ejecta. The overall spectral characteristics of the lobes and the arc are similar to those of Type Ia SNRs, and we propose that SNR 0104-72.3 is the first case for a robust candidate Type Ia SNR in the SMC. On the other hand, the remnant appears to be interacting with dense clouds toward the east and to be associated with a nearby star-forming region. These features are unusual for a standard Type Ia SNR. Our results suggest an intriguing possibility that the progenitor of SNR 0104-72.3 might have been a white dwarf of a relatively young population.

5 pages with emulateapj.sty, 3 figures. A modified version that is resubmitted to ApJ Letter

References in corpus (5)

• The supernova rate and delay time distribution in the Magellanic Clouds
• Typing Supernova Remnants Using X-ray Line Emission Morphologies
• Evidence for short-lived SN Ia progenitors
• The X-ray emission of the supernova remnant W49B observed with XMM-Newton
• Dense, Fe-rich Ejecta in Supernova Remnants DEM L238 and DEM L249: A New Class of Type Ia Supernova?

Cited by in corpus (11)

• Supernova remnants: the X-ray perspective
• An X-Ray Study of Supernova Remnant N49 and Soft Gamma-Ray Repeater 0526-66 in the Large Magellanic Cloud
• The supernova remnant population of the Small Magellanic Cloud
• Four new X-ray-selected supernova remnants in the Large Magellanic Cloud
• Measurement of the core-collapse progenitor mass distribution of the Small Magellanic Cloud
• Multi-frequency study of a new Fe-rich supernova remnant in the Large Magellanic Cloud, MCSNR J0508-6902
• Targeted search for young radio pulsars in the SMC: Discovery of two new pulsars
• Identification of a Jet-Driven Supernova Remnant in the Small Magellanic Cloud: Possible Evidence for the Enhancement of Bipolar Explosions at Low Metallicity
• A Systematic Study of Evolved Supernova Remnants in the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds with Suzaku
• Spatial Distribution of Mg-Rich Ejecta in LMC Supernova Remnant N49B
• Spitzer and Herschel studies of dust in supernova remnants in the Small Magellanic Cloud