Multi-antenna probing of absorbing regions inside and outside Cassiopeia A

Abstract

Context. Cassiopeia A occupies an important place among supernova remnants (SNRs) in low-frequency radio astronomy. The analysis of its continuum spectrum from low frequency observations reveals the evolution of the SNR absorption properties over time and suggests a method for probing unshocked ejecta and the SNR interaction with the circumstellar medium (CSM). Aims. In this paper we present low-frequency measurements of the integrated spectrum of Cassiopeia A to find the typical values of free-free absorption parameters towards this SNR in the middle of 2023. We also add new results to track its slowly evolving and decreasing integrated flux density. Methods. We used the New Extension in Nançay Upgrading LOFAR (NenuFAR) and the Ukrainian Radio Interferometer of NASU (URAN-2, Poltava) for measuring the continuum spectrum of Cassiopeia A within the frequency range of 8-66 MHz. The radio flux density of Cassiopeia A has been obtained on June-July, 2023 with two sub-arrays for each radio telescope, used as a two-element correlation interferometer. Results. We measured magnitudes of emission measure, electron temperature and an average number of charges of the ions for both internal and external absorbing ionized gas towards Cassiopeia A from its integrated spectrum. Generally, their values are comparable to those presented by Stanislavsky et al. (2023), but their slight changes show the evolution of free-free absorption parameters in this SNR. Based on high accuracy of the measurements, we have detected the SNR-CSM interaction. Conclusions. The integrated flux-density spectrum of Cassiopeia A obtained with the NenuFAR and URAN-2 interferometric observations opens up new possibilities for continuous monitoring the ionized gas properties in and around Cassiopeia A to observe theevolution of unshocked ejecta and the SNR-CSM interaction in future studies.

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