Evolution of the Reverse Shock Emission from SNR 1987A

Abstract

We present new (2004 July) G750L and G140L Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) data of the H-alpha and Ly-alpha emission from supernova remnant (SNR) 1987A. With the aid of earlier data, from Oct 1997 to Oct 2002, we track the local evolution of Ly-alpha emission and both the local and global evolution of H-alpha emission. In addition to emission which we can clearly attribute to the surface of the reverse shock, we also measure comparable emission, in both H-alpha and Ly-alpha, which appears to emerge from supernova debris interior to the surface. New observations taken through slits positioned slightly eastward and westward of a central slit show a departure from cylindrical symmetry in the H-alpha surface emission. Using a combination of old and new observations, we construct a light curve of the total H-alpha flux, F, from the reverse shock, which has increased by a factor ~ 4 over about 8 years. However, due to large systematic uncertainties, we are unable to discern between the two limiting behaviours of the flux - F ~ t (self-similar expansion) and F ~ t^5 (halting of the reverse shock). Such a determination is relevant to the question of whether the reverse shock emission will vanish in less than about 7 years (Smith et al. 2005). Future deep, low- or moderate-resolution spectra are essential for accomplishing this task.

28 pages, 12 figures. Accepted by ApJ

References in corpus (12)

• Monte Carlo Simulation of Lyman Alpha Scattering and Application to Damped Lyman Alpha Systems
• The X-ray Remnant of SN1987A
• Spatially Resolved STIS Spectroscopy of SN 1987A: Evidence for Shock Interaction with Circumstellar Gas
• The asymmetric radio remnant of SN 1987A
• Modelling the Hubble Space Telescope Ultraviolet and Optical Spectrum of Spot 1 on the Circumstellar Ring of SN 1987A
• On the Emergence and Discovery of Hot Spots in Supernova Remnant 1987A
• The X-ray Spectrum of Supernova Remnant 1987A
• SN 1987A's Circumstellar Envelope, II: Kinematics of the Three Rings and the Diffuse Nebula
• Evolution and Geometry of Hot Spots in Supernova Remnant 1987A
• New HST Observations of High Velocity Lyman Alpha and Balmer Alpha in SNR 1987A
• HST Spectroscopy of Spot 1 on the Circumstellar Ring of SN 1987A
• The reverse shock of SNR1987A at 18 years after outburst

Cited by in corpus (19)

• Balmer-Dominated Shocks: A Concise Review
• X-ray illumination of the ejecta of Supernova 1987A
• Multi-frequency Radio Measurements of SN 1987A over 22 Years
• Abundances and density structure of the inner circumstellar ring around SN 1987A
• Light-echoes from the plateau in Eta Carinae's Great Eruption reveal a two-stage shock-powered event
• Balmer-Dominated Shocks Revisited
• Three-dimensional distribution of ejecta in Supernova 1987A at 10 000 days
• Late Spectral Evolution of the Ejecta and Reverse Shock in SN1987A
• HST-COS Observations of Hydrogen, Helium, Carbon and Nitrogen Emission from the SN 1987A Reverse Shock
• Observing Supernova 1987A with the Refurbished Hubble Space Telescope
• The matter beyond the ring: the recent evolution of SN 1987A observed by the Hubble Space Telescope
• The Transition Zone in Balmer-Dominated Shocks
• JWST NIRSpec observations of Supernova 1987A -- from the inner ejecta to the reverse shock
• Evolution of the Chandra CCD Spectra of SNR 1987A: Probing the Reflected-Shock Picture
• High Resolution X-Ray Spectroscopy of SN 1987A: Monitoring with XMM-Newton
• Broad Lyman-Alpha Emission from Supernova Remnants in Young Galaxies
• Probing Elemental Abundances in SNR 1987A Using XMM-Newton
• Mapping High-velocity H-alpha and Lyman-alpha Emission from Supernova 1987A
• The morphology of the ejecta of SN 1987A at 31 years from 1150 to 10000 Å